RWBY: The Next Tale
by NobleMETA
Summary: Now that Team RWBY has graduated and become full fledged Huntsman, Professor Ozpin looks to the future. With a new class of Huntsman in training coming into his school, he must now guide new faces in the right direction. However, the evil in people's hearts is growing, and these new Huntsman will be put through tests that none of them could be prepared for. OC story, (SYOC)
1. Welcome to Beacon

As the airships flew in, everyone in Vale could see that a new year at Beacon Academy was about to begin. Young minds from all across Remnant were coming forth to learn what it would take to be a Huntsman, and fight the Grimm that populated the world. As Ozpin looked down from his office, he couldn't help but smile. Recently, he bore witness to one of the single greatest teams that ever passed through his academy, team RWBY, its members recently graduating mere weeks ago.

As he watched the students file into the amphitheater, he couldn't help but wonder if there would be students of that caliber ever again. '_Somehow, I have a good feeling that this will be a good prospect of students,_' He thought to himself as he sipped on his coffee. Moments later, he walked towards the office door, preparing for the speech he would give to the new students.

* * *

Down in front of the amphitheater, David Parsons entered the room and looked around at the rest of the crop. Being 6'7 gave him the distinct advantage of being able to look over the heads of everyone and see what was around him. It also made him easy to spot as well, and his brown curly hair and brown trench coat don't help him stay inconspicuous either. What people normally remember him for, was he was the kid who never wore shoes anywhere.

Looking around he saw many who looked to impress him. Some of the prospects caught his eye and he took a look into the details of a few of the other students. The first student he noticed appeared to be even taller than he was, with an olive skin tone, and buzzed black hair. The guy wore a yellow vest and pants, and a dark yellow breastplate. When David saw him, he thought the guy was stuck in deep thought, and figured it best not to disturb him.

As he kept looking, he noticed more and more odd characters. A man with slicked back silver hair in a black duster, a woman that honestly looked like an average person carrying a wooden stick, a man looking as if he just came from guarding a castle since he wore Atlesian Armor, and a man wearing a black and white checkered jacket with white hair. They all seemed like colorful characters to him, and he had to admit, it definitely seemed like the kind of place where people would learn how to fight monsters, based on what he saw so far.

Before David knew it, someone was already standing in front of him trying to catch his attention. "Oh, sorry, I didn't see you there for a moment," David responded once he saw the man standing before him.

To be fair to David, the person standing before him was just barely over 5' tall. He had light brown hair flowing down his head, pulled into a ponytail in order to keep it organized. Despite the attempt, it still managed to reach his waist in the back. He wore a white long sleeved shirt and jeans, and there was a metal gauntlet on his left arm.

"Oh, a short joke huh, I see how it is? Why don't I just make a tall joke and be done with it?" The guy standing before David asked.

"No no no it's not like that," David pleaded, holding his hands up defensively in front of him. "I just meant that I wasn't paying attention is all."

Instead of getting a snappy comment back, the guy in front of David just laughed. "Hey don't worry about it man, I'm used to short jokes by now," The guy responded, before extending his hand to David. "The name's Grayson Raleigh, you?"

"David Parsons." He took the extended hand that Grayson had offered to him. "So, what do you think of some of our classmates?"

"I don't know about you, but some of these people seem really weird to me," Grayson started. "Oh before I go anywhere, I kinda have a non-existent filter. So I pretty much say whatever comes to mind, figured you would want to know about that."

"Much obliged."

"Anyway, some of these people seem really cuckoo in the head if you ask me." Grayson pointed to the girl with the walking stick that David noticed earlier. "Take her for instance, she kinda looks scared right now, and looks completely out of place."

"Maybe she just lives far away and isn't used to this kind of lifestyle," David suggested.

"Eh, whatever, it doesn't matter if she knows what she is doing," Grayson shrugged. His attention turned towards the guy with the yellow vest. "God I feel so short right now with all of you tall people around, and that guys bigger than you are. Not sure about all the yellow though, kinda makes me want to punch a baby."

"Hey, no baby punching!" David stated.

Now it was Grayson's turn to throw his hands up defensively. "Sorry, just a figure of speech." Next he pointed to someone David hadn't noticed before. She was a wolf faunus, the ears and tail a dead giveaway, and she wore a black peacoat and white skirt. Her legs sported knee high black and white socks and she wore boots on her feet. "Now that girl, I kinda feel bad for. Who knows what kind of jerks would be out there looking to poke fun at her, all because she's a faunus. Some people really are scum if you ask me."

David only nodded in agreement. He hated seeing anyone getting treated unfairly, and always made sure to put a stop to it, even if it got him in trouble sometimes. David turned his attention and saw another woman hiding off to the side, away from everyone. She sported slicked back purple hair and tan skin, and she wore a black peacoat with purple accents on them. She looked like she was watching everyone, making sure that no one bothered her.

"What do you think of her?" David asked. "The one in the black with the purple hair."

When Grayson got a look at her, he felt a chill roll down his spine. "Yikes, something tells me she isn't a friendly person, or someone I would want to work with." Giving David a pat on the back, he chuckled to himself. "Watch, she's going to end up on your team while we're here, I can just tell."

That god David to laugh. Noticing the friendliness between David and Grayson, some more students walked over to meet them. The wolf faunus from before, as well as the man with the checkered jacket joined in, as well as a second faunus woman. This one was harder to notice, but David saw the white deer ears that she bore. It blended in well with her dark orange hair, and he noticed that she also wore an orange dress and white tights underneath.

"Hey, you guys mind if we join in?" The deer faunus asked.

"Sure, that's fine with me," David replied. "I'm David Parson."

"I'm Grayson Raleigh."

The wolf faunus, who seemed a bit nervous, waved her hand shyly. "Hi, I'm Holly Klinge," She muttered nervously. "Sorry, I just get nervous in large crowds."

"No worries, we're all friends here," David said, giving her a confident smile.

"Anyway, I'm Yxoa Stamp," The man with the checkered Jacket mentioned.

"And I'm Rusty Arrow," The last of the newcomers, the deer faunus, said confidently.

Before the conversation could get any further, they noticed someone approach the microphone stand up on the stage. They all recognized the headmaster of the school they were now attending. "Thank you all for coming, I'll endeavor to keep this as short as possible," Ozpin began. Once the crowd had fully died down, he began his speech.

"It brings me great joy to see so many of you out here today, from all across the kingdoms. I understand that everyone is here for their own reasons, but once you step foot through this door, you will learn that the skills you bring with you today, as well as your knowledge, will only carry you so far. What you may see is a group of colleagues preparing for the challenges ahead, but what I see, is wandering souls that do not know their way. Allow me to offer you the first piece of wisdom that you will learn from this academy. Your natural skill and where you are right now will only take you so far. Only you can take that first step towards bettering yourself, and becoming the person you were meant to be. Good luck to all of you."

Once Ozpin finished, he moved away to allow his colleague Glynda Goodwitch to step up in his place. "Tonight, you should rest up and ensure you are fully ready for the day tomorrow. You will gather in the ballroom to sleep tonight, and in the morning, your initiation shall begin. Be ready, you are dismissed."

As everyone started to file out of the amphitheater, David, Grayson, Holly, Yxoa and Rusty conversed amongst themselves while they walked. "So yeah, that was weird," Holly said.

"Who knows, what he said does make sense," Yxoa muttered.

Everyone seemed to agree with that and left it there, deciding that food was in order for their next destination.

* * *

**AN: You guys are quick with the response time on Villains. In the span of a few hours I ended up getting around 10 villains to use, and I plan on using them all at points in the story.**

**Now, speaking of that, we have updates to side characters and we have the current list of villains to go through.**

**Side Characters:**

**-Students:**

**Leaf Motif  
Terra  
Isaac Axis  
Steve Redcoat  
Nahliel Michelangelo  
Ashley Minami**

**-Professors:**

**Blanka**

**-Huntsman:**

**Amaris Caverly  
****Shiakuun 'Shia' ****Karasu  
Sulfur Arenia**

**-Mercenaries:**

**Sladen Silvers (sorry about the typo from earlier)  
****Tescelin Cobalt**

**Villains:**

**Slate Valentine  
Blake Valentine (submitted by a different person so there is no connection between the two thus far)  
Eve Helios  
Seth Tempest  
Xero Grimoire  
Toby Rosewood  
Azura Sunil  
Hakuran Inari  
Noster Alges  
Noah Strange  
Avery Strange (this one is a brother sister combo, so no confusion on that one)**

**Anyway, thanks to everyone who submitted an OC thus far. I'm still hoping to get a few more characters, in the side characters department now, and hopefully things go well for me. Gonna keep the chapters short so that I can get them out as quickly as I can.  
**


	2. Thinning Lines

That evening, the first year students all filed into the ballroom, where they were told to spend the night. Some students were chatting amongst each other, others relaxing before actually falling asleep, and some were already out. But for Amethyst Wake, she wanted to remain alone and away from teh rest of the student body. So she sat alone off to the side, her black peacoat traded for a old purple t-shirt that was way too big on her and worn out, her pants traded for flannel pajamas as well.

She was leaning against the wall, her possessions resting right next to her, what little she had brought with her. Moments before she got changed, Amethyst had made sure that her blade was sharp, knowing tomorrow would be a challenge. She didn't know what exactly would happen, only that it would involve going into the Emerald Forest. Most people were wondering what the deal was with the initiation themselves, but now Amethyst had an advantage that no one else did, information.

'_Hmm, if we're going into the Emerald Forest, then we're probably going to be tested on how well we can survive out there,_' Amethyst thought to herself. '_The Grimm are definitely in that forest so going in there, for whatever reason, should be difficult for most._'

Amethyst pulled out her scroll and opened up one of the files she kept in it's databanks. It contained all the information she got from Beacon's records before coming to the school, details like student and faculty names, who is organized into what team, information that is only accessible by members of the staff. Fortunately for her, she was able to slice into the databanks and copy a section of the records, without being caught. Before she could take a look at what was available, she noticed someone walking towards her, a purpose on her face as she did so.

"Howdy, what you doing here all by yourself?" The girl who walked up to Amethyst asked. The first thing Amethyst noticed was the heavy southern accent that laced the girls voice. Then she noticed the t-shirt with some band that Amethyst had never even heard of before, and lastly she noticed the jet black hair that curled towards the end. Before Amethyst could say anything to her, the girl sat down, right next to Amethyst. Amethyst was lucky that she hid her scroll away from this unwelcome newcomer before the girl got a chance to see it.

"I'm Polly, one of the new first year students just like you. What's your name?" Polly asked, though Amethyst would say that she was being way too friendly at the moment.

Amethyst didn't even give the girl the pleasure of a response, choosing to instead take her stuff and slide down away from her. "Aw don't be like that," Polly said in response to Amethyst's actions.

"Clearly you couldn't take the hint," Amethyst finally said to Polly.

"What hint?"

"The one where I didn't want to be near you." Amethyst was already thinking of a way to get rid of this girl, since clearly she didn't get the idea of leaving.

For some reason, Polly simply laughed and threw her arm around Amethyst's shoulder. "Shucks, you don't need to be shy, I'm a very friendly person," Polly responded. "You and I can be the best of friends, so give me a smile."

Amethyst just threw the girls arm off of her shoulder and grabbed her bag, searching for a new place to rest at. It wasn't worth it trying to try and argue with this woman. As she started to walk away, she barely had time to notice someone else bump into her. Giving the girl who just bumped her a glare, Amethyst really wasn't up for dealing with anyone right now, but it was clear that someone else wasn't giving her that option.

"Hey, watch where you're walking you dirty stink bag," The girl said to Amethyst, hoping to get a reaction out of her. "Stupid woman."

Even though it was mumbled, Amethyst heard it as clear as day. What surprised her about it was the context of the phrase she used at the end. Standing before her was a well endowed blonde woman, that was rude to other women. In a fraction of a second, Amethyst had already thought up a response back to her, a smirk appearing on her face.

"What's the problem? Am I too good looking a woman for you to handle?"

Instead of antagonizing Amethyst, the tables were turned, and now the girl was mad. "You women are all the same, stupid, thinking you're better than men," The woman barked back at Amethyst, getting right in her face. "Well guess what, you're nothing more than a stupid shell with nothing on the inside to offer anyone. You and the redneck bimbo you're friends with should just head home and let the men handle this, before you break a nail."

Other students who were nearby turned to see the commotion taking place before them. Amethyst could tell that things could get ugly quickly, but she was fortunate that the girl seemed like she would be easy to deal with in her current state. Before she could do anything, Polly was already stepping in between and getting right back into the other girls face. "I'm not a redneck, I'm southern, get it right," Polly said. Normally she wouldn't be involved in something like this, but she always hated being called a redneck or a hick.

Amethyst could tell that the girl was about to snap because of Polly's comment. As much as she didn't care if the girl got hurt or not, she didn't want to let this strange woman think she could walk all over her, or anyone else for that matter. As the girl raised her fist into the air, Amethyst made her move. She pulled a knife she normally reserved for throwing at her enemies out of seemingly nowhere, and stuck it in the wall, the girls shirt caught in the knife and holding it in place.

What surprised everyone, was that it looked as if what she did happened in a fraction of a second. One moment, this girl was raising her fist, and in that same moment the knife was out and Amethyst was holding it in place. The atmosphere around them turned cold, the air freezing still as they waited for something to happen.

Amethyst turned and gave a glare to the woman, who looked absolutely furious at that point. "This is your only warning," Amethyst warned. "Don't f**k with me, or the next time, it won't be your shirt that I'm aiming for." With that, she pulled the knife out of the wall and put it back where she grabbed it from on her waist. She was waiting for the girl to try and hit her again, but that didn't happen. A man who apparently knew this woman stepping in before the girl did something drastic. Not that she was paying attention to the conversation, but Amethyst heard a brief bit of the interaction between the two.

"Leaf, let me go so I can kill this bitch," The girl said.

The guy, Leaf from what Amethyst heard, simply held her back. "Terra, I wouldn't do that if I were you," Leaf said to his friend. "I honestly think she would be able to hurt you, so let's go." With a dark smirk on her face, Amethyst walked towards her bag and picked it up, fully intending to pick up where she had left off before being interrupted.

'_So, looks like people will know to avoid me from now on, good,_' Amethyst thought to herself. Before she could leave though, she still had to deal with Polly, who was hell bent on trying to be her friend.

"Wow, that was really cool what you did back there, I'm glad that you stood up for me when that-" Polly was cut off when she noticed the same knife from before strike the wall barely an inch from her head at eye level, the thunk of steel embedding itself into the wood creating a somewhat terrifying noise. When she saw the direction the knife came from, she saw that Amethyst had thrown it right at her.

Walking over to pull the knife out of the wall, Amethyst decided to just be blunt with this girl since she didn't seem to take the hint. "Not once, did I say that we were friends, so don't assume that we are," Amethyst scolded while pulling out the knife. "I'm not your friend, you're not mine. I didn't do what I did for you, I did it for myself. So, don't bother me, and don't try and follow me." Once she was done, she walked away, most of the eyes in the crowd wondering what the hell they just saw.

Once Amethyst was away from everyone, again, she pulled out her scroll. Before she turned it on however, she reached into her bag and pulled out an old photo, with two young kids looking like they went through hell, yet smiling none the less. One was a young girl, the other an even younger boy, both with a very similar shade of purple hair. The girl had scars under her eyes, scars that stayed with her till that very day, but it didn't seem to bother her. As Amethyst looked at the photo, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, running her hand over her dark purple hair.

She thought back to what she did moments ago. As much as she didn't like having to set the girl straight, it needed to be done. She knew that girl was too young to understand her, and too naive as well, but she said what she needed to say, and wouldn't take it back. "The less people know, the better."

* * *

**AN: This is turning out great so far, and these character interactions are gonna be so fun to write about. Already getting to use some of the Side Characters (don't hate them though, I do plan on explaining their back story just as much as the main characters), and this chapter was incredibly fun to write.**

**For those of you who's characters have already made their appearance, please let me know if I'm getting things right with them.**

**That being said, I just want to mention a new character that have come around since yesterday.  
**

**Bishop Strider (part side character/villain)**

**More OCs will be arriving as the story goes on so I'll be sure to keep up with everything that's coming in.**

**I'm eager to get this show on the road some more, so expect updates as often as they are ready. (I'm hoping to do a daily update for at least a while, but it may become a bit longer between chapters if my workload in real life becomes too much.)**


	3. A Step in the Right Direction

**AN: I'm not going to be talking much about this story today, except for one or two things. Today, we had something tragic happen to the Rooster Teeth Community. Monty Oum, the creator of RWBY, has been hospitalized, and is in critical care at this moment. We do not know what has happened, the RT staff respecting Monty and his family's privacy on this very traumatic ordeal. Hopefully he makes a full recovery soon, and that everything will be fine, but please remember to keep him in your thoughts until we know for sure that he is fine.**

****For me personally, it was very hard hearing about this, Monty has been an inspiration to many of us, myself included, and it is hard knowing that someone who inspires you is in pain. The only thing that I can do right now, is keep working until I know exactly what is going on. No matter what happens with Monty, I won't stop writing, I'll just make sure that my writing is even better for his sake.****

****I hope this didn't upset you before reading the story, but I wanted to mention this for those of you who haven't heard about what happened yet. Just remember to keep Monty in your thoughts, and remember that he can make it through this.****

* * *

Once the morning came, the students started to wake up and grab a quick bite to eat before initiation began. After last nights incident between Amethyst and Terra, most of the student body made sure to keep a descent amount of space from her, worried that they would incite her wrath next. Fortunately they didn't need to worry about that, since she make sure to keep to herself throughout breakfast, making it easier for everyone to stay clear.

After watching the exchange break down, Holly and Rusty had some definite concerns going into initiation. They spent time talking about their thoughts on Amethyst with Grayson, David and Yxoa. Grayson and David mentioned that when they first saw her before the welcome speech, they could tell that she wasn't someone that anyone wanted to mess with.

Then there was Terra, the girl who basically started the whole fight. Why she did it, Holly and Rusty didn't know. From what they could tell, the girl had some vendetta against all other girls for whatever reason. Holly wasn't really up to dealing with that kind of drama, especially since she already got some occasional heat for being a Faunus. Rusty, being a Faunus as well, felt the same way as her, and the two decided to avoid the both of them like crazy.

Once breakfast was over, they heard the announcement to grab their weapons and walk up to Beacon Cliffs for initiation. Holly and Rusty continued to chat about the events of the night before during their walk up, Yxoa joining the conversation soon afterwards. Yxoa would be the first person to admit that he is on the shyer side, but the way Holly and Rusty opened up to him, as well as David and Grayson, have given him some relief and allowed him to interact with them in a comfortable environment.

"Seriously, who has a knife hidden with them in their pajamas," Holly questioned. She was of course referring to Amethyst using a throwing knife during her altercation. "There's paranoid, and then there is suspicions of every single thing imaginable."

"Who knows," Yxoa responded.

"That's just stupid if you ask me," Holly continued.

"Maybe something happened to her when she was younger," Rusty chimed in. "Probably has it to protect herself."

"I doubt that, she seems to be nothing more than a crazy psycho if you ask me."

"Ten lien says that she ends up on your team," Rusty challenged.

After giving it a moment of thought, Holly nodded, pulling ten lien out of her pocket. "I'll take that action, Yxoa can hold the money while we wait for the results," Holly responded, handing her ten lien to Yxoa while they walked. Rusty did the same and the two shook hands to seal the deal.

Before they could reach the cliffs, they noticed someone come up behind them and join the party they were having. He wore a black jacket with a white shirt underneath, the jacket's sleeves rolled up. Grey pants and black and blue shoes covered his lower half, and he had navy blue hair combed to his right. "Hey there, no one told me there was going to be a party, I'm hurt."

"What are you talking about," Rusty asked the guy.

"Oh come on, if there was ever a time for the music to be running and the dancing to be happening, it'd be now," The guy responded. "Just imagine it, you two and me, partying it up in a quiet area, it would be a wonderful time."

"Dude, that's disgusting," Rusty barked. "Who even just says that to someone they never met before? Hell do we even know you?"

Laughing the guy wrapped his hand around Rusty's shoulders. "The names Raine Harlow, but you, can just call me sugar."

Before anyone could respond, a man in atlesian armor came up to them and pulled Raine off of Rusty's shoulder. "Leave these innocent women alone," The man said.

"Whoa whoa, take it easy, I was only messing around with them, it's kinda my thing," Raine pleaded with the guy before turning his attention to Rusty and Holly. "Sorry for sounding like a perv, I just like to mess with people. Didn't mean for it to go badly."

Rusty could tell the seriousness of his apology, noting how his facial expression gave it away. "Fine, just, don't try and make people uncomfortable, it's not that great of an idea, especially after last night."

"What happened last night?" Raine asked.

"Some girls got involved in a, disagreement, and one person brought out a throwing knife, and used it to both keep things from escalating, and using it to send a message not to be messed with," The man in the atlesian armor said.

"Wow, I swear, and this is meant to be a joke, but you women are more vicious than Grimm sometimes," Raine joked.

Despite the context of the joke, both Rusty and Holly couldn't help but laugh a bit at the joke. Once Holly calmed down enough, she responded to Raine. "Yeah, in a way that's actually true." Holly then turned her attention to the other man in their party. "So who are you by the way, I don't think we introduced ourselves."

"My name is Carinus Rook, but, most people call me Carn," he responded. "How about you?"

"I'm Holly, this is Rusty," Holly mentioned pointing to the girl walking with her, then to Yxoa. "That's Yxoa, and this is, er, what was your name again? I blocked it out when you were being a jackass."

Giving Holly a glare, Raine introduced himself to Carn. "Raine Harlow. Got it memorized?" Holly simply responded by sticking her tongue out at the guy.

"A pleasure to meet all of you," Carn mentioned. He gave everyone a smile, but looked at Holly a bit longer than the rest of them, a slight blush gracing his cheeks.

By that point in time, they had arrived at the cliffs, most of the first year students either there or arriving now. It didn't take long for the students to be ushered onto platforms with the Beacon Academy logo on it. As Holly looked around, she could see a few of her classmates were looking kind of scared, the most likely cause being the large height that they were looking out on. Holly could just tell that it was quite a drop, so she was more excited than ever before about initiation. When she looked over, she saw that both Raine and Carinus looked pale, and that another student further down the line in a black duster with the same paleness on him.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Professor Ozpin, who began speaking to the students before him. "For years, you have trained to become warriors. Whether by attending a combat school, or by teaching yourself how to fight, you have all made it here based off of your hard work and skill. Now, we begin to train you in truly becoming a Huntsman, by evaluating your skills in the Emerald Forest."

Professor Goodwitch cut in at that point and continued to explain what was happening. "I'm sure you all have heard the rumors about teams. Each of you will be given teammates, here and now during initiation."

Holly was surprised to hear that they would be assigned people that they would be working with. She could only imagine what some of the other students were thinking. Before she could turn to look, Ozpin began to talk again.

"You will be dropped into the Emerald Forest, where you will be required to demonstrate your own landing strategy. Once you are in the forest, you with be partnered up for the duration of your time here at Beacon, so it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with, will be your partner for the next four years at this academy, and there are no exceptions to this rule."

There was a bombshell if they ever heard one. With shocked faces throughout the entire class, Ozpin didn't give anyone the time to react. "Once you have been partnered up, you will make your way through the forest. There will be an abandoned temple that you must reach. Once you make it to the temple, there will be relics that each pair will grab and bring back to the top of the cliff. Guard that item once you have obtained it, and it will determine your standing at this academy. But be careful, this forest is filled with the creatures of Grimm, and they will not hesitate to kill you. Show them no mercy, for you will receive none. Are there any questions?"

When no one gave Professor Ozpin a response, he turned to one of the professors, Professor Shaw, who was Beacon Academy's newest teacher, and gave him the order to activate the platforms. One by one the students were sent flying into the air towards the Emerald Forest, to being the first test on their way to becoming a Huntsman.

* * *

**AN: Before I go, I want to mention two quick things about the story. First, a new side character, Professor Farrar Shaw, as well as a new villain named Black. Second, the villain known as Blake Valentine, is now being called Lucian Valentine (conflicting with Blake from Canon the creator of this character says).**

**Lastly, I'm personally surprised that no one mentioned the photo that Amethyst held in her hands at the end of the chapter. That photo is eventually going to be used for a huge part of her character development down the road, so just keep that in mind the next time it comes up.**

**Once again, please keep Monty in your thoughts in these trying times.**

**Noble**


	4. Grab a Partner and Run Like Hell

The students were flying high through the air, wind whipping their faces. As they started to descend down into the forest, each of the students enacted their own plans to land safely down on the forest below their feet. One student wearing a black duster named Ghost Cloud, pulled out his weapons, a Shotgun Scythe that he named Shadow Reaper, and used the blade to swing safely along branches until he hit the ground.

Another student, Yuhi Cheshire, took his weapon, a spool of thread that he named Grimm Widow, and threw part of the line into the trees. Watching the thread wrap itself around a tree, Yuhi rode the rope down until she hit the floor of the tree line and rolled once he made it down to the safety of the ground. Retracting the thread, he took off into the forest towards the direction of the temple.

Despite having trouble with the first part of initiation, Raine had managed to reach the forest ground safely. Taking a moment to gather his composure, he started to walk towards the temple. Not even twenty yards into his journey, three beowolves jumped in front of his path. Raine pulled out his weapon in the form of a Scimtar, ready to defend himself. As luck would have it, he didn't even need to fight. Columns of earth shot up from underneath the beowolves and sent them flying into the air away from Raine.

When he turned to find the source of this sudden event, Raine noticed a man wearing a yellow vest, the palm of his hand laying flat against the ground. The figure stood up and looked Raine in the eyes. Remembering what Ozpin had told them earlier, that meant that the two of them were now partners for their stay at Beacon. "Wow, how on earth did you do that?"

The man stood up, and gestured to the bracer on his arms. "Dust infused bracers," He said as he walked up to Raine. "My name is Diya Abd Al-Malik, and it appears as if I'm your partner." Diya offered Raine his hand to shake, which Raine accepted with haste.

"Raine Harlow."

Once they finished, Diya walked past Raine and further into the woods, a mace resting on his shoulders. "We should keep moving," He suggested.

"No argument here."

* * *

It wasn't long after Polly had landed that she found herself stopped by an Ursa. She held her walking stick, which also doubled as her weapon in front of her. The weapon, named Ancient Oak, was simply put, an unbreakable wooden stick, no matter what impacted it, the wood would never splinter. Polly did her best to block the Ursa's attacks, but her strength wasn't enough for her to damage the beast, it would only be a matter of time before she fell.

"Hey!"

Polly looked behind her to see Ghost running towards her. As their eyes locked with each other, Ghost kept running. "Give me a boost," He called to her. Polly seemed to take the hint, and she held her stick behind her in anticipation for his arrival. When Ghost was within reach, he grabbed the stick and felt Polly catapult him up and towards the Ursa.

With a little extra momentum from his shotgun, Ghost sailed through the air, bringing his scythe down on top of the Ursa's head, piercing it through and out at the bottom of it's mouth.

"Ew, that's nasty," Polly complained. Ghost however, pulled out his scythe from the now dead Grimm and walked over to Polly.

"I take it we're partners now," Ghost started to say. "My name's Ghost Cloud, you?"

"I'm Polly McAfee!" An emphatic Polly responded. "So, now what do we do?"

* * *

"Do you know where it is you're heading?"

Carinus turned back towards his partner. Having been paired with Holly Klinge had been a surprise to him, but he welcomed it openly. "If we find out which way north is, then that should be an easy question to answer," Carinus responded to Holly, looking down at his scroll to check the time. It was still early enough to determine which was was north with the sunlight, but how would they get above the treeline. "Do you know of a way that we can get above these trees?" After a few seconds of silence, Carinus turned to look at Holly, only to find that she had her weapon, a messer sword that looked to be made out of memory metal, out and a deep grin on her face.

When Carinus realized that they were surrounded by Grimm, he pulled out his own weapon. Sporting a battle axe that could turn into a machine gun, Carinus was at first confident that they would be able to take the Grimm on.

After three times the number that they originally had appeared out of nowhere, both Holly and Carinus silently agreed to get out of dodge.

* * *

Rusty could hear someone coming from a mile away. She managed to avoid most of the people there for a good portion of the time, but now it appeared as if she would be fated to becoming partnered up with someone after all. When the footsteps grew closer, she locked eyes with the person standing there, relief washing over her when she noticed that it was Grayson Raleigh, one of the people she met the day before.

"Hey Rusty, you find someone yet?" Grayson asked.

"Well, yeah, that would be you," Rusty responded, giving Grayson a pat on the chest. "Come on, we should get going soon before any Grimm show up.

* * *

Hearing the sounds of combat from other parts of the forest, Amethyst could only guess that others had been located by the Grimm, or were being attacked by other students that were in the mood to cause trouble. As long as it kept away from her, then it wasn't of any concern. That being said, when she heard the snap of a branch close by, she instinctively looked towards the source of the noise.

There she found David Parsons, and inadvertently locked eyes with him. Both of them let out slight groans after learning who their partner would be for the next four years. Right now though, she was subconsciously keeping her distance, experience taught her the hard way to not let people close after all.

Unfortunately for David, he was too nice for his own good. He kept on trying to be friendly to Amethyst, even though she barely gave him an answer to the questions he asked. "So, I get that you're already annoyed with me and all the questions," David said, earning an eye roll from Amethyst. "But I gotta ask, what's with the whole loner thing? You've barely said two words to me, yet I've tried to get to know you for about a half an hour now."

Amethyst sighed, if this was how the next four years were going to be, all these questions weren't going to be stopping anytime soon. "I'd rather stick to myself, that's about it. People haven't given me a reason to trust them so far."

David decided to place his hand on her shoulder, fighting the shrug that Amethyst gave him when she felt the contact. "What's so bad about trusting people? It would definitely help you to avoid situations like last night."

'_He doesn't understand, few people would,_' Amethyst thought to herself. '_Most people don't see how cruel the world truly is, how those who swore to protect them would be the ones that would stab them in the back._'

The silence didn't sit well with David, so he decided to stop Amethyst and wrap her up in a hug, which surprised her quite a bit. "I don't know what happened to you that caused you to be this way, but I promise that it won't happen again, I'll be sure to protect you."

That didn't sit well with Amethyst. Forcing herself out of the hug, she turned to look David in the eyes. "You don't have to know me, hell you don't even have to like me one bit, I don't care if I'm liked," Amethyst chirped. "Don't go assuming I need protecting, like I'm some scared little child. That part of me doesn't exist anymore, whether you like it or not."

David felt hurt by that. He felt one of hist biggest goals in life was to protect everyone he met, it's why he started training to become a Huntsman in the firstplace. Hearing something like that coming from his own partner, it hurt him, and despite all that she said, she knew it was because of her. Deep down though, she didn't feel any reason to try and care for his hurt feelings. So she turned and silently walked away.

* * *

Yxoa and Yuhi were partnered up almost instantly, landing on the ground not ten feet from each other. The two seemed to get along so far, and made it to the forest temple with ease. "Looks like we're the first ones here," Yuhi said as he walked with Yxoa down to the temple grounds.

Once they arrived, the noticed what was standing on the podiums before them, chess pieces. "Really? These are the relics that we were sent to grab?"

"I don't know," Yxoa responded, staying as quiet as ever.

Seconds later, Grayson and Rusty popped out of the treeline and found them. "Hey guys!" Rusty called out as she ran over to them. "Glad to see that you both made it safely."

"Well, there wasn't much in our way, so I guess that means someone else is getting really unlucky today," Yuhi responded. Almost instantly, the four saw Raine and Diya coming their way as well.

"So, how is it being so gigantically tall? How often were you picked first at basketball?" Raine poked and prodded, hoping to get a response out of Diya, who stayed silent, stoic and calm. Behind them came Ghost and Polly, the two of them enjoying a friendly conversation. After that, Amethyst and David joined the fray as well.

As each of the pairs selected their own chess piece, they started to hear a rumbling in the treeline. Rusty turned towards the direction they were coming from, before spotting Holly and Carinus running for what looked like their lives. "Guys what the heck is going on?"

"Grimm! Everyone get your relics and get out of here fast!" Carinus shouted as he burst into the temple, grabbed a chess piece and bolted out with Holly in tow. Most of the others didn't need to think twice about whether they would stick around or not, all the pair splitting off and going their separate ways.

* * *

Hours later, each of the pairs made it back in once piece. Ghost and Polly made it first, followed by Grayson and Rusty. Soon afterwards Diya and Raine arrived, followed by Carinus, Holly, David and Amethyst all showing up at once. They all stayed behind until Yuhi and Yxoa made it, even Amethyst, which threw David through a loop. After the last two arrived, the twelve students all walked back towards the amphitheater as a group, where the ending ceremony was to take place.

* * *

**AN: So I know I kinda skipped over the fighting, but that's because I wasn't sure how to write the way other people's OCs fought in my head. I put in a few things here and there, but nothing to dramatic.**

**Gotta say, people are really thinking that Amethyst is not to be messed with. Don't get me wrong, you wouldn't want to, but at the same time, she isn't perfect. I have a back story for her like you wouldn't believe, and everything get's explained with lots of time. So to Deadly Animals Are Cute, as she herself says, "...you don't even have to like me one bit, I don't care if I'm liked." If you do then that's awesome, but give it time to develop, no character is going to be perfect overnight and we're extremely early in the story for things like this to be really all that relevant.**

**Hopefully I managed to get the different personalities correct as best I could, and if not then please let me know how to improve. Next chapter is going to be the team naming ceremony, as well as the first night living together in teams of four. Hopefully you guys enjoyed this.**

**Noble**


	5. Thinking of Family

"Ashley Minami, Sage Ashburn, Nahliel Michelangelo, and Theron Cobbal. The four of you retrieved the Black Rook pieces. Therefore you will now work together as, team Tuscon," Ozpin said as the four students standing on the stage awaited their call. The letters TSAN being formed under the pictures of each student to show the shorthand of each team name. "Led by, Theron Cobbal. Congratulations."

As the four students walked off of the stage, four more students took their place to receive their placement in the standings. "Steve Redcoat, Terra, Isaac Axis, and Leaf Motif. The four of you retrieved the Black bishop pieces. From now on you will work together as, team Insulate (ISLT). Led by, Isaac Axis." Isaac took a step forward and bowed respectfully before leading his team off of the stage.

"I don't like that guy."

David was confused by his partners sudden admission. "Wait, Isaac? Isn't he the billionaire son of the Axis Company C.E.O.?"

"Oh yeah," Amethyst said. "Though that family isn't as cracked up as people see them as, much like the Schnee family. But, I digress, we'll be heading up soon."

"If you say so," David agreed. Turning back to the stage he could see that the next four were already up top.

"Raine Harlow, Yxoa Stamp, Diya Abd Al-Malik, and Yuhi Cheshire, the four of you retrieved the White Rook pieces. You will now work together as, team Dry (DRYY). Led by, Diya Abd Al-Malik. Congratulations," Ozpin said. Diya let out a small bow, much like Isaac did, and he led everyone on his team off the stage, even giving Raine a low five subtly.

At that point, there were only 2 teams left that needed to be introduced. "Rusty Arrow, Ghost Cloud, Polly McAfee, and Grayson Raleigh, the four of you retrieved the White Knight pieces. From now on you will work together as, team Grape (GGRP). And you will be led by, Ghost Cloud." Ghost was surprised when he heard the news, but then put a smile on his face and took a step forward, giving Ozpin a salute once he did. "Congratulations."

Now all that was left was the last team, and then initiation would be over. "And last but not least, Holly Klinge, Carinus Rook, Amethyst Wake, and David Parsons. The four of you retrieved the White Bishop pieces. Therefore, you will now work together as, team Arched (ACHD). And you will be led by, Amethyst Wake." The look of shock that was on everyone's faces out of the four standing on stage was a sight to see. Not once did they anticipate it, but it was Ozpin's decision, and clearly he saw something that they didn't. "Congratulations." Turning towards the audience, he gave one final speech. "Thank you all for coming to this ceremony, and I wish all of our new students luck in the coming year. You are all dismissed."

* * *

Team GGRP Dorm

"Whoa, these dorms look incredible!" Rusty said once they all arrived at the dorms. "Man, there is so much space in here it's like we could hold a party in here with all different kinds of stuff."

"Eager to get the fun times rolling?" Ghost asked.

"Oh hell yeah," Rusty replied. She started running back and forth across the room, before being grabbed by Grayson.

"Easy there drunky mcgee, we just got in and already you wanna get trashed," Grayson said. "Let's at least unwind first, that initiation was killer."

Polly walked over to the bed and fell flat on top of it, moaning a bit once her head it the pillow. "I don't know about you, but these beds are way more comfortable than I'm used to. Good luck getting me up in the mornings, I'm a heavy enough sleeper as it is."

"You're not even gonna take a shower or get changed first?" Grayson asked. When he didn't hear a response from Polly, who was out like a light, he threw his hands in the air and threw his stuff onto one of the three other beds. "Fine, though I hope she does shower at some point, we all stink and need to clean up."

"I'll get started on that then," Ghost said, pulling a towel, a change of clothes, and shower stuff out of his bag, then walking into the bathroom that came with the room.

Rusty threw her stuff next to the bed that was next to Grayson, they were partners after all. "So, Grayson, we're partners now," Rusty said.

"Yeah, that we are," Grayson responded back to her as he was laying on his bed, throwing a tennis ball up in the air repeatedly.

"So, why don't we get to know each other, or something like that, since we're partners after all," Rusty asked.

After catching the tennis ball he threw into the air one last time, Grayson sat up on his bed and turned towards Rusty. "Sure, sounds good to me. What do you wanna know?"

Rusty realized she didn't know where to begin, so she started off simply. "Um, where you from?"

"I was born in Vale, lived there all my life. You?"

"I used to live in some of the southern farmlands, but, it wasn't always great there."

"How so?"

Rusty closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "It's because I'm a Faunus. My family was basically slaves working on a farm. Conditions were poor and we barely had enough to feed my family. I was the oldest of three and it was always disheartening to see them cry when they barely had enough food to feed them. I spent many nights giving my food to my siblings so that they would have something."

"What happened to them?" Grayson asked. He had walked over to Rusty's bed and sat down next to her.

"I, I left my family behind when I was ten, just needed to get out of there and find something else to do in my life," Rusty admitted. "Do I hate that I left my family behind, yeah I do. I figured that becoming a Huntress would allow me to get my family into a better life, even if it costs me my connections to them by running."

Grayson let out a deep breath and rubbed his face with his hand. "So you basically abandoned them."

Rusty hated having it pointed out to her so bluntly, but it was true. "Yeah, yeah I did." She shook her head and chuckled to herself a bit. "They're probably better off without me, one less mouth to feed and all that s**t."

"Only you will be able to figure that out," Grayson said as he stood up and walked back over to his own bed. "Anyway, moving on from this topic, what kind of weapon do you use? We really didn't see any action in the forest earlier today."

Rusty pulled her weapon out from her bag, extending it from the size of a hairbrush to its full length. "This is Bari, it's a Harpoon/Spear Staff that I can collapse for convenience. It's got it's uses, but I figured that it could do with an upgrade at some point."

"Cool, I got a rifle that doubles as a claymore called Morningstar," Grayson said, showing off his weapon. Not a second later, Ghost appeared out of the bathroom. Rusty stood up when she saw him appear and she grabbed her stuff.

"Dibs!" Rusty shouted as she pulled a towel, spare clothes and shampoo out of her bag. She ran into the bathroom quickly and jumped into the shower soon after.

"Well that was weird," Ghost mentioned.

Laughing Grayson went to lay down on his bed. "Eh, I didn't see anything wrong with it."

Ghost saw the remaining bed and figured that would be his. So taking his stuff he began to unpack some of the trinkets that he brought with him, pictures of his family, logos of a company that made motorcycles, a few books that he brought with him.

"Wouldn't it be easier to do that tomorrow when we have more time to do that?" Grayson asked.

"It would, but I figured get a head start on it now while I'm up for a little bit," Ghost responded. "So, you have a good conversation with Rusty?"

"Yeah, for the most part," Grayson said. "She's definitely had it hard, but at least she's here for good reasons. How about you? Why are you here?"

"Parent's were Huntsman, so I'm following in their footsteps," Ghost easily replied. "And what reason is she here for?"

"She wants to help her family out from the hard times they are going through I guess, that and help with Faunus rights and all that."

Ghost smiled at the answer. "Yeah, that's some good reasoning I guess." Once Ghost was finished with his unpacking, and once Rusty and Grayson showered and were back in the room, Ghost shut off the lights. They had a big day tomorrow.

* * *

**AN: Alright, now is the time where I start to focus less on as many characters as I can per chapter, and narrow down my chapters to focus on one or two characters per chapter as much as I can. This chapter of course is mostly about Rusty, with some additional info on Grayson and Ghost. **

**Next chapter of course is going to be the first day of classes, and I actually want to see who you guys want me to focus on. So I want you guys to vote on it for me and I'll do my focus on that character for the next chapter. As of this posting it's 9:50 where I am, so I'll leave voting up until 2 p.m. tomorrow afternoon, when I start on the chapter for the vote to be open. Even if you vote afterwards I'll throw your opinion in for the chapter afterwards.**

**For these next few chapters I'll be doing this so that each character gets proper development based on what you want to see. EVERY CHARACTER WILL GET DEVELOPED, some might be developed at a slower pace than others though. I do have quite a large number of characters to work with so that is a huge factor into what I do.**

**Anyway, let me know how I did.**

**Noble**


	6. The First Day is Always the Craziest

**So, today's chapter is going to be on Carinus. You guys voted and it was two votes for Amethyst, and two votes saying I should pick. I figured that there has been enough info on Amethyst already and therefore her development can be saved for a little later. Continue to vote on who you want to see get developed next. Hope you guys enjoy.**

* * *

Team ACHD dorm room

After a long debate within the dorm room, over what they would do for sleeping arrangements, Team ACHD was getting ready for their first nights sleep together as a team. Amethyst was in the shower and David was listening to music as he started to hang a few of his possessions on the walls for decoration. Carinus and Holly were off laying on their beds however, waiting for the lull of sleep to take effect.

"So I gotta ask."

Carinus looked over at Holly from his bed. It wasn't that she was wearing anything revealing, just a white tank top and some flannel pants, but for some reason, Carinus found her to be very beautiful in that particular moment. "What's with the way you stuck up for me earlier? You didn't even know who I was and yet there you were coming to my defense like a knight in shining armor," Holly questioned. "Whats the deal with that?"

"Maybe he thought that the guy was being a jackass," David interjected from the other side of the room.

"You weren't even there David," Holly retorted. "The guy was just being a sarcastic ass, not a total jackass. Turns out he's a nice guy anyway, unlike some people we know." Holly of course was glaring at the door that led to the bathroom, where the shower was running.

"It's the first day, give her a chance," David replied. "She may end up surprising us all."

"I doubt that she will," Holly said, turning her attention back to Carinus. "But anyway, that's something for another time. So what caused you to stand up for me?"

Carinus rested his head back against the pillow. "Eh, I hate bullies," He began. "People who get enjoyment out of causing others misery are the kind of people that cause all kinds of problems in this world. Take for instance the conflict between the SDC and the White Fang. Faunus get treated poorly and in response you have armed rebellion and conflict between two groups of people. All of that could have been avoided if the higher ups would've done the right thing and given the Faunus the equality that they deserved."

"Well, from what it looks like so far, the heir apparent, Weiss Schnee, plans on taking steps to bring prosperity to the Faunus," David cut in again. "Take for instance the new labor laws she helped pass. It's now required by law that Faunus be given equal pay, benefits, and opportunities as Humans. I'd say that's a step in the right direction."

"Isn't Weiss Schnee also dating her partner from when she was here at Beacon?" Holly asked.

"Eh, rumors are rumors," David rebuked. "Unless it becomes canon, I'm not gonna say it's true or not. I can still ship it though, but that's my own opinion."

Holly sat up and looked at David, confused as to what she just heard. "Did you really just say that?" When all she got in response was a shrug, she shook her head and turned her attention back to Carinus. "Anyway, so the reason you helped was because you thought he was being a bully?"

"In a manner of speaking, yeah I did," Carinus replied. "See, I've always done things like that, stick up for people who would be bullied, whether it was a Human or a Faunus. If someone was getting picked on, I would always step in to defend them."

"Sounds like there's a story behind that," David cut in.

Closing his eyes, Carinus thought back onto one of the first times he defended someone else, how glad he was that he took a stand for someone who needed it, and the bitterness of realizing that the person left the area because of the discrimination. "Yeah, you could say that."

"You ok, Carinus?" Holly asked, standing up from her own bed and kneeling down next to him at the edge of his.

After taking a deep breath, Carinus nodded. "I'm good," He replied. "Oh, and most of the people I know call me Carn, it's easier for people to remember as well."

"If you say so," Holly conceded. After hearing the shower turn off, Holly walked back over to her own bed. "Well, I'm off to get some shuteye, night you guys."

"Night." Both David and Carinus replied before Holly turned out the lights.

* * *

The next day, classes were in full swing. Carinus was up and feeling lively, ready to take on the new day. It seemed as though he was going to get along with his entire team, save for one at the moment. Only time would tell if that would pan out or not, but he wasn't going to dwell on it at the moment. After grabbing his books and throwing them into a bag with some other supplies, Carn was out the door of his teams shared room and ready to tackle the first day of school.

To begin his day, he had a rather peculiar class, an aura training class taught by Professor Shaw. He was a rather strange character, standing tall with short red hair in a suit that seemed appropriate for a professor. The guy had a pipe in his mouth what appeared to be every second, and behind him sat a record player that was playing jazz music soft enough that it wouldn't disturb class, but loud enough that it could be heard at points in time.

"Alright class, welcome to your first day at Beacon Academy. My name is of course Professor Farrar Shaw, and today, you will begin to learn how to strengthen your aura, so that you of course may survive longer out in the world of Remnant whilst fighting the creatures of Grimm." As he heard the professor speak, Carinus couldn't help but feel as if the guy was reciting some of this off as if it were a memorized speech.

"Anyway, now that I got the boring stuff out of the way, you guys might be wondering how it is that I can help you build up your aura," Shaw said. "Well simply put, the best way to increase your aura, is to treat it as if it were natural muscle growth. You push it to the limit in controlled environments, and over time it gets stronger and stronger, allowing you to push it even further as it develops."

Carinus had to admit, that seemed very logical. "Now, before we begin, would anyone care to explain to me what their semblance is exactly?" Shaw looked out to see a few hands raised, before choosing Carinus to speak.

"My semblance allows me to create shield glyphs in front of myself or others," Carinus explained. "However, the further from myself the glyph appears, or the larger the glyph, the more energy it takes to use."

Professor Shaw seemed to comprehend this all to well, and he already was planning a way to strengthen Carinus' own abilities. "So, what would you believe would be a wise course of action in the use of strengthening your aura, through the use of your semblance?"

"I guess, I would just have to hold those glyphs to protect a target from attack," Carinus said. A few rows behind him, some students were chatting amongst themselves, poking fun at Carinus and the Professor. Shaw walked back to his desk while still paying attention to Carinus speak. "I guess I would have to hold the glyphs for as long as possible, and later on, try to hold them for longer than before."

Reaching to the side of his desk Professor Shaw grabbed his weapon. "That would be a brilliant way to handle things." As he finished, he pulled out his sword, Arcus Pulvis, and switched it to a crossbow, taking aim between the two chatty students and opening fire. Before the arrow could sail towards its intended target, a glyph formed in front of the two students, who were surprised by the sudden arrow heading towards them.

Even Professor Shaw was surprised by the sudden course of action, and couldn't help but laugh a little bit. "You two are certainly lucky," He began. "Here you are, cracking jokes and making fun of a fellow student, and when the slightest possibility of harm comes your way, that very student protects you as best he can."

The professors demeanor suddenly changed and he appeared to grow very sour. "I will say this to you once and once only, you are here at Beacon Academy to become the worlds next defenders. I will not tolerate slacking off, joking around, and if you do not take any of your studies here seriously, you will not live very much longer. You will take this class, and the rest of your classes here seriously, because if you don't then it may not be your life that dies because of your incompetence, and there would be no forgiveness for that." He placed his weapon back onto his desk and glared directly at the two troublemakers. "You two are going to stay after class, as for the rest of you, write down your semblance and create three different ways that you can use it to strengthen your aura. Once you finish, place your research on the desk and you may go."

With that, the students began to work, Carinus surprised to see that the professor was as intense as he was. Despite the earlier outburst, he was suddenly sitting down in his chair, his feet up on the table, and smoking from his pipe while listening to the music that felt much louder than it actually was.

* * *

**AN: Not only did I get some development on Carinus, I got to fully introduce Professor Farrar Shaw. I'm really going to like this guy, and it was really easy and fun to write for him.**

**Now, I want you guys to continue to voice your opinions on who you want to see get development. Because Carinus was recently done, and because Amethyst has had enough already, I'm taking them out of the voting, so that other characters can get developed (even if it's a little bit). So go and vote.**

**Noble**


	7. Fighting Fire with Gasoline

**AN: Gonna start off by saying, shoutout to 666funtimes for coming up with a brilliant idea for what to do in terms of who to focus on for the next few chapters. I'm going to be taking his advice and going through each team at a time and doing work on them, then when I do a round with them, start on the next team. After I've done all teams, then we're gonna start getting into the villains and what each character has to deal with from them.**

* * *

The first few days of class went by easily, though Holly knew that it was only the beginning. In her mind they were likely going easy on them so that they would adjust to the level of difficulty that came with studying at Beacon Academy. What she was really surprised at, was that the quality of the food served was considerably high. She was expecting something a little bit more subdued than what they actually got. Turkeys served on a normal afternoon, watermelon that took up an entire table, hell even a swordfish was being cut up and served to the students.

'_I could definitely get used to this,_' Holly thought to herself.

She sat down at the lunch table, her partner Carinus, teammate David and a few others from team DRYY and GGRP, specifically, Raine, Yxoa, Yuhi, Grayson, Rusty and Polly. What actually surprised her was that her team leader Amethyst was sitting with them, though she didn't know why, and Amethyst didn't say much, voicing her opinion on subjects on occasion. When asked about it, Amethyst would simply state that she might as well get to know her team a little bit, with the occasional outburst claiming that she didn't have anywhere else to sit. After a few days of that, Holly just went with it, letting things go about as they would.

As they all sat down to eat, across the room they saw something that sickened them. One of the students was being rude and bullying a fellow student. What made it worse was that the student being insulted was a Faunus.

"God that's just sickening that we have this going on here," David said.

"What are we waiting for? Why doesn't any of us do something about it?" Rusty asked.

"Because if we did, then odds are, we would be the ones that would get into trouble," Diya said as he walked over to the table.

"Hey, it's tall tan and talkative," Raine joked as soon as Diya took a seat. "How's the weather up there?"

Diya chose to ignore the jabs by Raine and continued the conversation. "If we were to get into a fight with the man, we would be punished for causing the disturbance."

Amethyst scoffed when she saw who the bully turned out to be. "Besides that, that's Jay Winchester, son of Falco Winchester. Because of dear ol' daddy, he's got something of an immunity card."

"Oh you have got to be kidding me," David interjected.

"Whether you like it or not, there isn't much we can do to him," Amethyst responded. "Besides, that type of person is more common than you would think, especially in the high end of society."

"What do you mean?" Polly asked.

"The type of people who think that the Faunus are the scum of the earth, and walk around like they can treat them like dirt," Amethyst said, her head shaking while she did. "They don't see what I've seen, what we've all seen. Their too stuck up in their power and status to look at things from an outside perspective."

"Glad to know that you at least are fine with the Faunus," Holly cut in, talking about Amethyst's anti-social behavior. "I'm guessing you just hate everyone then."

"No, it's just that I don't trust people, there's a difference," Amethyst retorted.

Holly just stood up and started to walk over towards Jay, intent on stopping things before they got worse. "I can't sit still any longer. I don't care if I get in trouble or not, I'm doing something about this."

Before they could say anything to her, Holly felt a hand grasp her arm. She turned to see the scarred eyes of Amethyst glaring at her. "You can't stop me from doing this, team leader or not I'm not gonna let this slide."

Instead of that, Amethyst leaned in and whispered something into Holly's ear. After hearing what she had to say, Holly smirked. Amethyst let go of her arm and then sat back down in her seat, allowing Holly to continue on her quest.

As Holly approached Jay Winchester, she yelled out to him. "Hey!" That got his attention clearly. "Is it just me or do I smell a pig with auburn hair trying to be mean to a Faunus?"

"Get the hell out of here fluffy," Jay responded, not interested in what she had to say?

"Really, that's the best you can come up with?" Holly jabbed. "I've heard worse from an infant, though you should know. I heard you just got out of day care not two weeks ago, am I right?"

Jay turned towards Holly and strutted right up to her. "You better turn around and walk away right now, before I turn your face into jelly that this animal behind me can munch on."

"Oh really? I gotta say though, you really aren't that intimidating right now," Holly said, continuing to jab at Jay. "Your insults are bland, you look more like a child model, and quite honestly, I figured that someone like you would be taller."

Over at the table with Holly's friends, they were all cheers for her when she threw those insults. Raine, Yxoa, Yuhi and Rusty were cheering her on. Grayson, David and Polly were laughing, Diya looked as straight faced as he normally did, and Amethyst couldn't help but smirk.

"Oh snap! Looks like you got owned Jay!" Raine called out from across the room.

Holly could tell that Jay was getting furious, his face showed clear signs of frustration. "Fine, looks like I gotta put you down the hard way!" Jay quickly raised his fist and took aim to strike at Holly.

Unfortunately for him, Holly knew that was going to come, so she was ready for it. As soon as his fist swung at her, she countered it, tossing him over her shoulder and onto the ground. Surprised at how he was thrown around so easily, Jay got up and went for another attack, only to be thrown onto the ground again. Before he could go for a third attempt, Professor Goodwitch stepped in between the two students.

"Would anyone here like to explain what it is that just happened?" She demanded.

"Miss Goodwitch?"

Upon hearing her name, Goodwitch turned to see Amethyst walking towards her. "This man was threatening another student, and when Holly here stepped in to defend her, he attacked her for no reason," Amethyst pleaded.

"Do you have any proof of this Miss Wake?" Goodwitch questioned.

"Well, if you notice on Holly's face there is a fresh bruise on it," Amethyst responded.

When she heard that, Holly reached up and felt the sting of a bruise on her cheek. '_But how could that be? I don't remember him landing a hit on me at all?'_

"But I didn't hit her!" Jay pleaded.

His cries fell on deaf ears, as Goodwitch grabbed a hold of his arm and dragged him away. "Thank you for enlightening me of the situation, Miss Wake. Please bring your partner to the nurse so that she can see how bad the damage is."

"Right away ma'am," Amethyst replied. She started to escort Holly out of the room.

Once they were out of earshot, Holly stopped Amethyst right there. "Ok, what the hell happened? I don't remember getting hit."

Amethyst turned to her and gave a sly grin. "Heh, that's because it wasn't Jay who hit you in the face," She shrewdly replied. "That part, would be me."

"What?! But how? You couldn't have done it while I was fighting, and you definitely couldn't have done it when Goodwitch was around," Holly shouted.

"Let's just say I was really quick about when I did that," Amethyst said.

"Ok then, so why did you feel the need to do it then?" Holly questioned.

Amethyst gave Holly a pat on the back. "Goodwitch bought my story now didn't she?" When Holly didn't seem to get what Amethyst was saying, she tried again. "In a way, I just, stacked the deck into your favor. You got to beat up Jay, and he got in trouble for it. Goodwitch won't know realize what actually happened, so we all win."

After giving it some thought, she realized Amethyst was right. She didn't like that it was partially just a big lie, but if she were to say the truth, she would get into more trouble than it was worth.

"Damn, you are a cold mother f**cker," Holly said. With that, the two continued towards the nurse to get Holly's bruise checked out.

* * *

Later in the day, Holly was out in the city of Vale with her partner Carinus. The two had decided to go out and take in the city since they didn't get to do that at any point beforehand. They spent most of the day comparing Vale to where they hailed from, with some other small talk in between. "So let me get this straight, your dad's from Vacuo, the land of no shirts, and he moved into Atlas. The same Atlas that is strict and anal about most things?" Holly questioned.

"Yeah, grew up as a Hunter's child," Carn responded. "If you couldn't tell it runs in the family. Anyway, what about you? What was your family like?"

Holly didn't really feel like answering that at the moment, yet she gave as brief a description as she could. "My parents split up when I was young and I lived with my mom in Mistral. Me and my dad don't get along so don't ask about him. Aside from that things were normal I guess."

"We're Huntsman in training, everything is far from normal," Carn retorted.

"True enough."

"Speaking of things being far from normal, what the hell did Amethyst say to you before you tackled Jay? I know she said something, so don't try to say she didn't."

Holly chuckled, thinking of what happened earlier had reminded her that maybe she was wrong about Amethyst, even if it was only a little bit wrong. "She said, and I quote. 'If you get him mad, he'll react without thinking, making him easier to take down. Plus since he'd most likely attack first, you would be less likely to get into trouble that way'. Kinda weird, having her help us for once, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I guess David was right, we just gotta give her time," Carn said as they walked back towards the airship to head back to Beacon.

* * *

**AN: So, there really isn't any one specific character that I'm focusing on in this chapter. Instead I did a bit more work on the relationship between Holly and Amethyst, which if I had to explain it, would simply be "Acquaintances that tolerate each other, most of the time". Though that will change with time, that's where it is at right now.**

**Anyway, next chapter is going to feature more info specifically on David.**

**As of this moment, our character list looks like this:  
**

**Main Cast:**

**TEAM ACHD  
Amethyst Wake, Carinus Rook, Holly Klinge, David Parsons**

**TEAM DRYY  
Diya Abd Al-Malik, Raine Harlow, Yxoa Stamp (pronounces e-show-uh), Yuhi Cheshire**

**TEAM GGRP  
Ghost Cloud, Grayson Raleigh, Rusty Arrow, Polly McAfee**

**Side Cast:**

**Other Students:**

**TEAM ISLT  
Isaac Axis, Steve Redcoat, Leaf Motif, Terra**

**TEAM TSAN  
Theron Cobbal, Sage Ashburn, Ashley Minami, Nahliel Michelangelo**

**Professors  
Farrar Shaw, Blanka, Gaia Mitera, Leif Hurson  
**

**Hunters  
Amaris Caverly, Shiakuun Karasu, Sulfer Arenia, Lux Solaris**

**Mercenaries  
Sladen Silvers, Bishop Strider, Raeven Ru-une**

**Villains  
Slate Valentine, Eve Helios, Seth Tempest, Xero Grimoire, Toby Rosewood, Azura Sunil, Hakuran Inari, Noster Alges, Lucian Valentine, Noah Strange, Avery Strange, Black  
**

**Other  
Ludwig Axis**

**That is a lot of OCs, quite a lot if you ask me. (This is also the most recent list of characters that I am including. If your character is not in this, then I didn't see how this character would be useable. Either there wasn't enough information to said character, or they appeared too OP for the position they seemed to be applying for.  
**

**HOWEVER, I am still taking OCs for use as side characters. Keep sending me any characters you have and if they meet the requirements then they will have a place here. As of now that the count of OCs is at 44, and odds are I might have to close the entry because of the sheer volume of personalities that I would be working with.**

**Anyway, hopefully you enjoyed this chapter, and you guys didn't mind this long AN at the end (though most of it was an updated cast list). Thanks for reading.**

**Noble**


	8. Melting Icy Hearts

"Is there a reason why you decided to drag me out into the city?"

David just smiled as he walked with his partner down the streets of Vale. They had been at Beacon for a few weeks now, and yet he still hasn't been able to figure her out at all. Every time he tried to learn about her, she would find some way to avoid it. David was surprised that she was able to come up with what felt like 50 unique reasons as to why she wasn't able, or willing to talk about herself with him.

Earlier in the day, David decided that he wanted to talk with one of his professors about the issue and what he could do about it. During the hand to hand combat class, David was distracted, which went noticed by Professor Gaia Mitera, so he chose to speak to her about it. Once everyone was out, the professor approached him where he sat.

"So David, what is it exactly that seems to be bothering you?"

From where he sat, the professor was very imposing and fierce looking. Even when he was standing, she was still taller than him, and she wore a black business suit for class. Her pine green hair was pulled back, her eyes of the same color showed concern in them instead of the usual critical gaze that she gave for class.

"What gave it away exactly?" David asked.

"You were distracted earlier, and that's why Diya was able to throw you around as easily as he did," Mitera explained. "Normally you would be doing better than this, so my instincts kicked in and told me that you weren't fully here during class." Mitera poked his head when she was in the middle of her explanation.

Trying to piece together his own thoughts, David knew that she was right and that he needed to talk about it as well, even if she didn't directly say it. "It's just," He paused, stood up and walked a few feet towards the side of the room, then stared at the wall. "It's been what, three four weeks now, and yet I still know absolutely nothing about my partner. We're supposed to be working together, and every attempt that I make at learning who she is, they're all shot down quicker than I can blink. I don't know what I need to do in order for her to open up to me."

David didn't notice when the professor came up to him until he felt a hand placed on his shoulder. "David, I understand how you would want to learn what kind of person your partner is, but not everyone is willing to share who it is that they are," Mitera said. "For some people, they might not feel comfortable with some things being learned about them, for reasons that only they will know."

"But what do I do in order for her to feel comfortable with telling me?" David questioned. "How do I get her to trust me?"

Professor Mitera looked at David and shook her head. "That's your first problem." David tilted his head to the side, confused at what she said. "You're trying too hard to get her to open up when she isn't ready. You're like a field medic with a reckless streak, you would be willing to rush in and save a person's life, no matter how bad their injury would be. The problem with that, is that you would even do so during missions when such an act would only get yourself killed. You're problem is that you aren't waiting for the right time to go for it."

"I get that, but it's not in my nature to just give up like that on a person, no matter how badly they don't want me to," David replied.

"Did I ever say that you should give up and stop trying?" Mitera prodded. "Don't put words in my mouth when they weren't there to begin with." After taking a deep breath she continued. "What I am saying, is that you should show her that you can be trusted over time. This won't be something that happens quick, but it may end up working out better for you than whatever it is that you're doing now. Don't try and ask her to tell you anything, just show her that if she ever decides to tell you, that you can be trusted with her life's story. You just have to be patient and wait for it, over time she should see that you're looking out for her."

David closed his eyes and took a deep breath, realizing what it was that she was saying. "Thanks Professor, I really appreciate that."

Which led him to where he was now, walking down the streets of Vale with his partner next to him. "I just wanted to stop by the store and pick up some supplies and food for the room. Figured you would want to get something while we're out, and maybe grab some lunch on the way back. I kinda want something other than Beacon's food right now."

Amethyst shook her head, she should have known this would happen. "Really David, you're trying this again?" She questioned. "I told you before, I'd rather not talk about me, so stop asking."

"I never said that I was gonna do that," David calmly replied.

That wasn't the answer that Amethyst was expecting to hear, she was thinking she would hear him continue to pry. She turned her head to stare at him, and she looked up to see that he was still smiling. "Did I hear you right?"

"Yeah, if you don't want to talk about yourself, then you I won't ask you to." He turned towards one of the stores they were about to pass by and walked to the entrance. "Ok, I just need to grab some ammo rounds for Honor and Glory, maybe you should as well."

"Fine," Amethyst grunted as she went to find the ammo for her weapon.

As they walked throughout town, David and Amethyst stopped at a few different places to pick up items. By the time David decided that they should stop and get lunch, each of them was carrying about 3 bags in each hand. The two stopped down at a cafe near where the airship would pick them up. Despite a little protest from Amethyst, David said that he needed food away from the academy for once, and offering to pay for Amethyst's meal helped his cause ever more.

After they put in their orders, David and Amethyst started to hear a little kid whining to his mother. From what the two of them could tell, the kid was nothing more than a spoiled brat with a parent that seemed to give him everything he asked for. From what they heard, the kid kept trying to take a cookie from his mom's purse, but she wouldn't let him. As time went by the mother went off to the bathroom, leaving her purse behind as she did. Amethyst had a sudden idea, a familiar grin crossing her face, like it did after she got Jay Winchester in trouble.

"It's a shame to see a parent spoil a child like they would," David said. "But she should at least let him have one cookie. It's a good compromise if you ask me."

"Yeah, then what happens when the kid decides that one isn't enough?" Amethyst retorted, leaning back in her chair. "Who would stop him from whining and complaining until he got exactly what he wanted? In all honesty, that kid needs to learn how to appreciate what he already has. Let him live off the streets with nothing to his name, then ask him if he would think that a single cookie is enough."

"Wow, that's harsh," David replied. "You'd really subjugate a child to living like that?"

Shaking her head, Amethyst looked off in the distance, focusing on nothing in particular. "It'd be better than some people have it."

David didn't know how, but he got the feeling that she was speaking from experience when she said that. "I wouldn't want to wish that on anyone," David proclaimed. "And since I'll become a Huntsman after Beacon, that just means I'll ensure of it once I graduate."

"As great as that sounds, I know it's impossible to accomplish," Amethyst uttered. "There's too many reasons and causes for all the bad in this world, and no matter how much work you put in, it'll never be enough."

"Then maybe I'll just do as much as I can do," David replied. "Every little bit helps right?"

Amethyst chuckled a little bit to herself. "Byz would've really liked you," Amethyst whispered to herself.

Even though he wasn't supposed to hear that David did. "Who's Byz?"

Amethyst realized what it was that she had said, and how David had heard it. It was a moment where she felt like she messed up. Recovering from her flub, Amethyst returned to her normal roots. "Not important. Oh hey, foods about to show up."

Right as they got their food, the mother of the spoiled child returned. David and Amethyst didn't even get a few bites in before they heard the mother yelling at the kid for apparently eating all the cookies, despite how David swore he never saw the kid reach for them once.

After they ate, the pair walked back to the airship and boarded. Putting all the bags down, Amethyst reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a little plastic bag. "Here, thought you would find find this interesting," She spoke as she threw the bag to him. What David saw confused him greatly, the bag being full of cookies. It didn't take long for him to put two and two together.

"What the heck did you do?" David asked, wondering how it was even possible that she had the cookies in the first place.

Smirking, Amethyst went on to explain it as vaguely as possible. "Let's just say I, decided to help him learn the value of what he has, with a little bit of fun in the process."

"Wow, you really are cold blooded aren't you?"

"So I've been told."

David just shook his head. "Honestly, I don't think you are."

"What?"

"I don't think you're cold blooded," David said, giving her a smile. "I get the feeling you have a warm heart deep within an icy fortress. Who knows, maybe I'll see that side of you one of these days."

'_I honestly doubt that would happen,_' Amethyst thought to herself. '_But it's nice that you're trying to warm me up, David. Maybe one of these days I could show you, but that's a long way away from now._' "Keep telling yourself that," She said in response after a few seconds.

"Doesn't mean I won't try," David said. "Gotta work for the things that are worthwhile after all."

Amethyst couldn't help but give what he said some thought. No one would ever make this hard of an attempt to learn about her. As far as she knew, David was working the hardest to learn about her, and it had to count for something. '_Maybe it would be worthwhile in the end._'

* * *

**AN: Damn that was a chapter. So, that should cover Team ACHD for a little bit. I already have a pretty in depth storyline revolving around Team ACHD later in the story, and it's going to be a fun one I tell ya.**

**So, if anyone is wondering, I'm most likely not going to be doing much shipping, unless I speak with the characters creators about who I could ship them with. I have an idea for one such particular ship, but for now it will just be teasing. If you guys want to see something specific, feel free to say something and I will see if I can manage it.**

**Anyway, coming up next in terms of development is Team DRYY. Thanks for reading!**

**Noble**


	9. A Wanderer at Heart

The training room was a comforting place for Diya. Every day he would come here after his classes and train in order to unwind after a tough day of classes. Diya knew he wasn't the smartest person out there, but no matter how hard the challenge in front of him was, whether it be in the classroom, or the battlefield, Diya persevered and came out stronger than ever.

Diya activated some of the training dummies so he could train, bringing out his weapon, a Multi Dust Flail Mace named Bonds of Iron. Once the dummies activated, he began his training. Diya started by running forward towards the first dummy and hitting it into the ground with his mace. Once it was destroyed, he released the flail and swung it around, striking the second dummy.

As he swung the flail towards a group of dummies bunched together, he activated the dust he had inside the flail, sending out a shock wave of lightning from the spot his flail impacted the ground. Even thought the flail landed in between the dummies, the lightning that erupted did its job and took the dummies out of commission. He continued with this until all the dummies were nothing but scrap on the ground before him.

Satisfied with his work, he reset the training room floor and let his weapon rest against the wall on the side. Returning to the center of the ring, he sat down on the ground and intertwined his fingers in front of him. Once he was situated, he began to relax and unwind, letting the quiet tranquility of the training room calm his mind and loosen his muscles. He felt his body begin to return itself to a state of well being, his mind going into a realm of calmness that gave him perfect take on his situation.

It had taken him a little bit of time to let it sink in, but he was the leader of a team at Beacon Academy. Such a responsibility would make his parents proud of him for sure, but he knew that it was no longer going to be easy for him. He had to be ready at all times, both in body, mind and spirit. This time that he spent in training helped with him keep up his physical strength, no doubt about that. What Diya knew he needed to work with though, was his intelligence. He wouldn't be a great leader if he wasn't smart enough to know how to solve a situation. While he was a quick learner, there was only so much he could do.

This is where his meditation came into play in helping him advance. It allowed Diya to open up his mind so that information could flow in easier, as well as alleviate some of the concerns that crept into his mind every now and then.

Unfortunately for him, his teammates would on occasion cause a disturbance that would render his meditation incomplete. His own partner in particular was a major cause of this disruption, and while Diya rarely got mad, he certainly didn't appreciate Raine doing that.

Satisfied with his meditation for the moment, Diya stood up and prepared to leave the training room floor. Before he could however, someone stepped in and walked up to him.

"Hey, figured I would find you here," The person called out.

Diya instantly recognized him as his teammate, Yuhi Cheshire. Out of all his teammates, Diya found Yuhi to be one of the easier ones to get along with, besides Yxoa, though even he could do something that Diya wouldn't like.

"What can I do for you?" Diya asked.

"Well first of all, you're actually talking, holy crap," Yuhi responded. Diya would be the first to admit he wasn't the most talkative person out there, though he wasn't the only one. "Second of all, I was hoping that you could help me out with some strength training."

Nodding, Diya set the room to lay out weight machines and equipment that would be used in that sense. He walked over to the first machine and gestured for Yuhi to sit down on it. Once Yuhi was on, they began to work.

"So, Diya" Yuhi said between reps. "Why do you always come here? You always seem to be here doing training instead of spending time with your teammates back at the dorm."

"It's quieter here, more peaceful," Diya uttered in response.

"Yeah, I get that it is, but I mean, seriously, you don't need to avoid us like we're the plague," Yuhi chastised. "Besides, you should take the time to learn about the kind of people we are anyway."

"Care to explain that?"

After setting the machine back into place, Yuhi turned to Diya to explain. "Do you know what I like to do in my spare time, or how good I am with dust and things like that?" Getting only a nod as a response, Yuhi shook his head. "Just as I thought. You need to learn about us, since you get to lead us in the field while were at school. And we also need to learn about you as well."

Taking a moment to ponder, Diya nodded in agreement. "Fine," He said as he sat down on one of the workout benches, Yuhi sitting close by on a different one. "Don't expect me to talk much."

"Hey, any little bit helps I guess."

Taking a deep breath, Diya began to explain himself. "I was raised in Vacuo under the parentage of a warrior father, and a philosopher mother. I learned how to fight, and I learned many philosophical paths during my youth. The way I was trained, I learned to focus my mind into the fight so well that they're almost perceived in slow motion."

Chuckling, Yuhi seemed impressed by what he heard. "Wow, sounds great if you ask me."

"There wasn't much time for socializing, I was always working towards my training," Diya continued. "Hence why I am in here now, training. Anything else you wish to know?"

Yuhi took a moment to think of what to say, rubbing his hand along the bottom of his chin. "Well, is your family still alive?"

"Yes."

"Well then, how about this," Yuhi mentioned, leaning forward from where he was sitting. "Why do you want to become a Huntsman?"

Such a simple question, yet there was no such thing as a simple answer to this. "Well, I guess it's because of my grandfather. He would tell me stories of his journeys throughout Remnant and it entranced me to see the world for myself. If I were to become a Huntsman, that would mean I could see the world, while also making an effort to change it for the better as well."

"Wow, that's very thoughtful," Yuhi admitted. "You know, when this is all set and done, and we graduate from Beacon, maybe I'll go and join you in the journey. It's always better to travel with someone, traveling alone is boring and dangerous. Plus, I mean, it's always better to enjoy the scenery with a friend."

Giving it some thought, Diya came to the conclusion that Yuhi was right, it would be better to travel with someone. For now though, he would work on his own with only the skills he had accompanying him as he fought his way through Beacon.

"Maybe someday, I might take you up on that."

* * *

After they finished training, Yuhi and Diya made their way back to the dorm room. There wasn't much conversation between the two, but neither of them cared. It was comfortable at that point, no one wanting to break the silence.

Their silence would be broken for them however, when the pair noticed that two people had ran right past them in a hurry. Diya immediately recognized the first as his teammate Yxoa, but the other was a mystery to him. Turning to look at Yuhi, it was clear that he was just as confused as Diya. Not a moment later, Professor Goodwitch walked up to them.

"Diya, please make sure that your teammate, Mr. Stamp, is properly reprimanded for the idiotic stunt that he pulled moments ago." It was all that she said before turning away. "I want to see him in my office by the end of the day!"

Both Yuhi and Diya knew, whatever Yxoa did that got him into trouble with Goodwitch, it certainly wasn't a smart idea. Leading Yuhi back to the room, Diya was ready to lay the smack down where he needed to.

* * *

**AN: Ok, so I was out of commission for a little bit, I've been feeling under the weather the past few days, and classes are underway and need my attention of course. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten this story, and will keep working on it as much as possible.  
**

**Now, a few things I need to address. First of all, in the list of side characters, I forgot to write down one for the Mercenaries, Tescelin Cobalt. Second, and more important, my lovely gf is working on drawing each of the main characters in a picture with their teammates. I personally can't wait to see how that turns out, and hope you guys enjoy seeing it as much as I will.**

**Thanks for reading, let me know what you think of this chapter in the reviews, and I'll see ya next time.**

**Noble**


	10. Brothers

It was just another boring day for Yxoa, go to class, study, complain that there isn't enough to do in the day, cook himself dinner, the usual stuff. To him, sitting around without something to do wasn't a great idea, and often times he found it incredibly boring. Diya would be training constantly, and while Raine and Yuhi were fun to talk to, there wasn't much for them to talk about at that point. They didn't connect as well as many others did, but they still worked well together for the short amount of time they knew each other.

Still, despite that, Yxoa tried to make the best of it. He often made dinner for his teammates with the buildings kitchens that were available to them. Usually this led to his teammates growing closer to each other since they were all sitting down together to eat as a team. It helped, but Yxoa still didn't feel like it was enough to get through the initial barriers that people seemed to have set up. Diya didn't talk much to begin with, Yuhi was easier to talk to, yet even he had points where he didn't feel like talking about something, and Raine, well he was usually an open book. Even he had his limits though, and Yxoa didn't know how to break through.

So, it was a pleasant surprise to Yxoa to see his older brother Apex walk up to him while he was returning from classes. "Hey, look who it is, if it isn't the little squirt."

"Apex, when did you get here?!" Yxoa questioned. Apex, Yxoa's older brother, had gone away to travel the world and find his place in Remnant. It compelled Yxoa to travel the world himself, but he knew that his destiny was to be a Huntsman.

"Oh not long ago," Apex responded. "Mom told me that you got into Beacon, and I figured I would stop by and take the chance to catch up and congratulate you on this accomplishment."

"Thanks bro."

"Heh, it's what brothers do after all," Apex proclaimed, wrapping his arm around Yxoa. "Anyway, it certainly has been a while since I've seen you. Why don't we go and do something fun together, for old times sake?"

Yxoa knew what he mean, and pulled himself away from Apex's grip. "Oh no, not while I'm here at Beacon. You don't know how much trouble I could get into if we did something like that." Yxoa and Apex used to pull their fair share of pranks on people while they were younger, mostly just messing with school bullies. Their antics got them into trouble on a few occasions, but normally they got off with no hassle whatsoever. This time it was different, and Yxoa knew it.

"Come on, I'm sure there's some way we could pull a prank on someone without getting into trouble," Apex insisted.

As much as he didn't want to go through with it, he did know of someone that needed a little lesson to be taught to him. "Fine, just make sure we don't get in trouble," Yxoa conceded. "The guy's name is Jay Winchester, overall jackass and bully to many people."

"So, how do you think we should go about this exactly?" Apex asked. "You thinking public humiliation, replacement of property, or a combination of both?"

After giving it some thought, Yxoa had an idea in his head. "I got something even better than that."

* * *

Everything went off smoothly, their plan had been enacted with ease and successfully executed. So why in the world were the brothers running? Well, unfortunately for them, in their plan, they didn't count on the fact that Jay would be speaking to Professor Goodwitch when they made their move. They were fortunate that Professor Goodwitch wasn't turned into collateral damage, however, getting off scott free was pretty much out of the question now.

Their plan was simple, create a taffy bomb and drop it onto Jay. Their execution was flawless, only Jay was hit with it, and he was covered from head to toe in taffy, with everyone around him watching it happen. The escape, that was where they failed, mostly. The brothers managed to get away from Goodwitch for the moment, but given that she knew who it was that dropped the taffy bomb, it would only be a matter of time before she came for Yxoa.

"Whoa, that was incredible!" Apex exclaimed once they had reached Yxoa's dorm room.

"Incredible? I'm about to get into so much trouble now!" Yxoa reacted.

"Please, you don't have to worry about it at all," Apex rebuked. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"Yeah Yxoa, this guy is right," Raine popped in. "By the way, nice job. Everyone in the school is laughing at Jay over what you did."

"Really?! Well now I'm definitely in trouble. Goodwitch is going to kill me." Yxoa walked over to his bed and fell onto it, letting his head hit the pillow hard. "Dammit, the odds of me still being in this school after today just went down dramatically."

"Dude, calm down, it's not as bad as you think it is," Apex tried to reassure. Unfortunately for Yxoa, Diya and Yuhi showed up in the room, and Diya didn't look pleased with Yxoa.

"Care to explain why Professor Goodwitch is mad at you, and wants to see you in his office?" Diya asked.

Yxoa went pale when he heard the news. "Oh man, this is bad, this is really bad."

"I don't know what you did, but whatever it is, you shouldn't have done it," Diya chastised. "You're at a school training to become a Huntsman, you should be more mature than that."

"Hey," Apex spoke up to Diya. "If anyone should get yelled at, it's me. I was the one who convinced him to do this, even though he didn't want to. Whoever it is that is looking for him, I'll go to them and explain why it's my fault and not his."

Diya eyed Apex from head to toe. "And who might you be?"

"Apex Stamp, Yxoa's older brother," Apex shot back. "Look, don't tell me that Yxoa needs to be responsible for his actions, because we all know he is a lot more mature than I am. If he's gonna get into trouble over my actions, then I'd rather take his place instead."

"Apex, you don't need to do this," Yxoa cut in. "It's my fault, and since I had a hand in it, I need to be responsible for it."

"Yxoa, sometimes you need to learn when to back off," Apex interrupted. "I don't care if you feel responsible, I don't want you to get into trouble for this." Apex turned his attention back to Diya. "Take me over to whoever this person is that is looking for my brother, I'll take the heat for him."

Somehow, Diya saw something in Apex that drove him to comply. "Follow me." Guiding him out of the room, Apex smiled back at Yxoa before walking with Diya to see Professor Goodwitch.

Deep down though, Yxoa had this nagging feeling in his gut. His brother did say that he would take care of it, but at the same time, he knew that he needed to take responsibility for his actions. Before Diya and Apex got too far down the hallway, Yxoa ran up to them and joined them.

"I thought I said that I would take the heat for this," Apex said.

Yxoa shook his head, continuing to walk forward. "I know, but I need to take responsibility for my part, it's what a Huntsman would do. I mean, it is what I'm training to become, is it not?"

Throughout all of that, neither Apex nor Yxoa noticed Diya crack a faint smile as he walked in front of them.

* * *

**AN: Not gonna lie, this took way longer than it should have. I've been busy with school and trying to make sure that what I write is good enough to use, only problem is that I've hit a bit of a wall and I'm trying to work around that.**

**Hopefully I get back on track, but don't be surprised if I find it hard to do. With everything that is going on with me, I am trying to work around it as much as possible. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I hope I keep getting the characters right.**

**Noble**


	11. Underneath Your Skin

After dealing with Yxoa's little prank, Yuhi was surprised to see that he was still alive after going to Goodwitch's office. Apparently taking responsibility for his actions got him some leeway from the professor, though it didn't seem as though it was a big deal to Yuhi on how things turned out. Still, Yuhi thought that the prank itself was pretty clever, and had to give Yxoa credit for coming up with the idea.

The next day, classes were going on as usual, and combat training was under way. Yuhi watched as his fellow students challenged one another to fighting. After seeing the leader of Team ACHD notch a victory against Steve Redcoat of Team ISLT, class was nearly over, and Goodwitch called for the last match of the day to take place.

Selecting two names at random, Yuhi noticed that he was going up against none other than Jay Winchester.

"Oh great, he's probably not in the best of moods," Yuhi reacted.

"You'll be fine," Yxoa cut in. "Just be sure to think during that fight and you should be fine."

"Easy for you to say," Yuhi chided. "I wasn't the one that had to go and piss him off the day before."

"Whoa, calm down man," Yxoa reacted. "I know what I did was stupid, and I'm getting punished for it accordingly. How was I supposed to know that you would be in a match with him right now?"

Yuhi decided to just give Yxoa a glare, before eventually breaking out into a bit of laughter. "It's ok man, I was just messing with you," He conceded. Yxoa let his head hang back as he let out a deep sigh. "I'm not mad at you, in fact, I find what you did to be hilarious. I just figured I'd give ya a hard time about it, didn't mean anything else by it."

"Uh-huh, so you say," Yxoa grumbles.

"In any case, time for me to go out there and fight this guy," Yuhi said, standing up and walking towards the locker room to get changed.

Inside the locker room, Yuhi was mentally preparing himself for the spar against Jay. Every single time he went into battle, or went into a place where the potential for a fight was present, he would always take the extra steps to calm himself down, lest he lose his cool and let his destructive side out. This moment of privacy that he had in the locker room was something that he cherished. It gave him a chance to organize his thoughts and help keep his own personal demons in check. When he was ready, he walked back out to the arena, ready for the fight.

Once he reached the floor, he noticed that Jay was already standing there waiting for him to arrive. Yuhi gave Jay a look over, noticing that he was wearing a black undershirt and black pants, with scattered pieces of armor over top of it. In his hand, he held a single handed battle axe in a tight grip. Taking note of this, Yuhi figured that he was still frustrated from all of the problems that he had to deal with in the past few days.

"Alright students, if you two are ready, you may begin," Goodwitch ordered, signaling the start of the fight.

As soon as she initiated the match, Jay took off towards Yuhi, spinning around as he got close and bringing his axe downward. Yuhi was easily able to avoid the strike and threw some of his thread towards Jay, snagging his left arm. With the thread locking one of his limbs in its grip, Yuhi stood back and worked to stay out of Jay's range. Jay of course, wasn't making it easy for Yuhi to keep his distance, rushing towards him and using his free hand to swing the axe.

Eventually, Jay had the idea to use the thread that Yuhi was holding onto as a makeshift sling. Since Jay had more strength than Yuhi, it was somewhat easy to throw him around at first. Hitting the ground and walls a few times, Yuhi knew he needed to stop things soon.

Suddenly an idea came into his head, and he grinned while waiting for Jay to try and throw him again. When Jay did so, Yuhi felt himself fly through the air. Instead of landing hard on the ground though, he twisted his body at the last second, landing flat on his feet, with momentum on his side. Using that momentum, Yuhi pulled at the thread, and pulling Jay as well. Now with Jay in the air, Yuhi swung at his head with a roundhouse and connected hard with the side of his face.

The blow knocked Jay off balance even further, and Yuhi took the opportunity, to wrap more thread around Jay's body, effectively tying him up during his moment of daze. Threading the string around him with quick efficiency, Yuhi soon had Jay's arms and legs tied up, his opponent incapable of escaping. With the inability to make any sort of move, both offensively or defensively, Jay was unable to fight any longer.

"The winner of this match, is Yuhi Cheshire," Goodwitch called out after a few seconds of watching Jay struggle, and fail to escape. "Despite his aura not being lowered, his inability to defend himself has left him vulnerable, and therefore has resulted in his defeat." Turning towards Yuhi, she spoke to him personally. "Congratulations on your victory, but please untie Mr. Winchester."

"Sure thing boss lady," Yuhi smirked. With a tug on the string, Yuhi spun Jay around and untied the thread, spinning Jay around as well as if the kid was a top.

After getting back on his feet, Jay looked over to see Yuhi starting to walk off the stage. "Yeah yeah, you are sure smug right now," Jay responded to the defeat. "Take away that stupid string of yours, and you're pretty useless."

Hearing that stopped Yuhi in his tracks. Normally he wouldn't have to deal with this kind of disrespect after a match, but it was clear that Jay wasn't the kind of person who showed respect. It started to get under his skin, getting on his nerves and stressing him out. Deep down inside, he could start to feel a dark presence build up, forcing Yuhi to blatantly ignore Jay so that the feeling he was getting would be snuffed out.

'_Not going to lose control of that,_' Yuhi thought to himself. '_Not while everyone is watching, especially my teammates._' As Yuhi continued to walk off stage, he could feel the glare aimed right at him, choosing to ignore it as much as he could. With every second he spent avoiding it, it gave him more time to relax and head off on his own. Nothing was gonna screw up his perfectly normal day, especially not a self righteous jerk like Jay Winchester.

As he got back to the locker room, Yuhi let out a sigh of relief. He managed to beat Jay during the spar, but he also kept his emotions in check during the aftermath while he was being taunted into reacting. Even if it wasn't because of what was within him, a Huntsman never lost his cool, never let the words of others affect him or her. Despite that though, Yuhi couldn't help but feel a little disheartened at what Jay had accused him of. All he could do about it though, was spend a little bit of time on his own, hoping that it wouldn't cause too much of a problem for him in the coming days.

* * *

**AN: Not even gonna lie, I've had some serious writers block with this story, as well as a few other stories of mine. That's on me, I will be the first to admit it. So for all 2 of you who read this, please forgive the delay.  
**

**Anyway, only one character left of Team DRYY to get a bit of development for, followed by Team GGRP, then we start to get into some of the plotlines. My idea with that is that I would have a story arc with one team being the main focus in that story, and developing them as a unit through the different difficulties that they would be facing during their time at Beacon.**

**I have plenty of ideas that I want to run with, so hopefully you guys all enjoy that tremendously. Thanks for your patience and I hope you enjoyed this (albeit very short) chapter.**


	12. A Side Unseen

Raine wasn't one for sitting around too often. There were days when he went all over the place, trying to find something to do with his time. One minute he would be chatting with his teammates about school work, and then the next, he would be running up to someone with a joke in mind. Often times, this got him a reputation for being a jerk or being unlikable, but hearing those things being said about him hurt.

Even his own partner didn't show much concern for Raine, blowing him off to do other things when he felt that Raine wasn't being serious. As much as it bothered Raine though, he had to push past it for his own reasons.

Still, Raine wanted to show that he wasn't entirely a jerk off, so to prove it, he was going to try and be more sociable and likable. With his partner Diya in tow, the two of them went out into Vale to 'bond'.

"Come on ya big lug, it's just a little bit of grocery shopping," Raine commented. After getting only silence in return, Raine was wondering if it was worth it to go out there in the end. "Ok, I get that I can be a pain in the rear at times, but seriously, the cold shoulder isn't really appreciated."

"You do this to yourself," Diya finally said in response.

"Please don't try to lecture me on this right now," Raine groaned. "I get that I'm a jerk at times with my choice in humor, but seriously, you don't give me a chance to actually show you that I'm a decent person."

"Because you haven't shown those qualities, and instead parade around like a monkey loose on the streets," Diya reacted. "Now let's get the supplies we need and move on. I've missed enough training with this poor attempt at reaching a connecting point."

Having all but given up, Raine just let his head hang low as they walked into the market. Diya walked away from Raine, off to find what he felt the team needed on his own. Raine figured that it was better in the end since Diya wouldn't give him the chance to prove his worth to him.

As he walked through the market though, Raine noticed something out of the corner of his eye. A little girl was sitting in front of a stand that held a bunch of different fruits on them. People kept walking past her without taking any notice, but the one thing that Raine did notice, was just how upset the young child looked.

Raine didn't even think about what he was going to do, and immediately walked over to the little girl, kneeling down in front of her. "Hey there," Raine said, hoping that his polite and soft tone would help the child feel comfortable. "You look lost."

"M-my mommy said, that she would be right back," The young child said in response. "That was a really long time ago and I'm scared."

Hearing that, Raine sat down right next to the girl with a smile on his face. "I bet I know what you need right now," He said.

"What?" The child asked.

"It's simple," Raine said, smiling. "You need someone to wait with you so that the time goes by quicker!"

Seeing the child perk up a bit after hearing that, Raine quickly got onto his feet and while crouching, turned to the owner of the stand that they were sitting in front of.

"Hey gramps, I'll take six apples please," Raine said, tossing the man some lien before picking six apples for himself. Once he had his pick, he returned to his prior seat, and handed the girl one of the apples. "Here, want something to eat?"

"That's too much for me to eat though," the girl replied. "My mommy usually cuts them into chunks for me to eat from."

"Well, then in that case," Raine said, before dramatically holding the apple out in front of him. He started to hum to himself, getting louder as time went on. As he reached a certain point, he threw the apple up into the air, and while making a kung fu sound effect, karate chopped the apple. Without moving, the apple split into eight even slices and fell into Raine's other hand.

"Huoi!" Raine proclaimed as he held the slices out for the girl to eat.

"Wow, that was cool!" The girl replied, clearly over the fact that she was crying moments earlier.

"You think that's cool, just wait till you see this!" Raine said, digging into his pocket and pulling out one of his 'trick' bullets. Looking at which one he had, Raine was satisfied by his pick and knew just what to do with is. "Now, if I flick this right on the bottom, something really cool will happen. You want to see what this will do?"

"Yes!"

"Alright, here goes nothing!" Raine proclaimed as he flicked the bottom of the bullet. Instead of being a normal bullet, Raine happened to load this one with confetti instead of the metal of a regular bullet. As soon as his finger impacted the bullet, all of the confetti shot out into the air, a party favor sound effect playing as the different pieces shot upward. Raine saw that the trick had this little girl laughing, and it brought a smile to his face.

"What are you doing?"

The shout stopped the girl from laughing, and it forced Raine to look at who it was that called out. The girl instantly stood up and ran over to the woman, giving Raine the idea that it was in fact the girls mother. "Mommy!"

"What were you doing with my daughter?" The woman asked. By this time Diya had returned, and he was assuming the worst had happened, so he was ready to take Raine and put him into his place.

"Ma'am, please, I was just trying to keep your daughter company while she waited for you to come back, I swear," Raine said. He could see Diya was approaching, a scowl on his face, and he could only assume that Diya was going to kill him somehow.

"Mommy, why are you yelling at the nice man?"

"Sweetheart, did this man hurt you in any way?" The mother asked.

"Miss, I hate to interrupt, but I would like to apologize for my associates actions," Diya said once he approached. "I'll make sure that he gets a proper reprimand for this."

"No!" The little girl cried out, running over to Raine and grasping at his leg now that he was standing up. "He did nothing wrong!"

"Sweetie come back her!" The mother called out. "Step away from the dangerous man."

Instead, the child held onto Raine even tighter. For his part, Raine figured it was best to just walk away, but not without leaving the little girl with something to smile about. He knelt down, which wasn't that hard, even with the child attached to one of his legs. "Hey, kiddo. You're really kind for sticking up for me, you know that?"

As Diya and the child's mother watched, waiting for something to happen. Raine held out his hand, the palm open, and with a simple flick of the wrist, an apple appeared where it was empty before. This caused the child to smile and giggle in excitement. "For you kid," Raine said, giving the child the apple in his hand. "Don't forget, it's always a great thing when you can help someone smile when they need it."

Now that the child was off of him, Raine stood up and started to walk away. He kept his hands in his pockets and didn't look back, not wanting to see the reactions on anyone's faces. They probably wouldn't understand what he had just did anyway. Surprisingly, Raine noticed that Diya was soon caught up with him, though he didn't bother to look over and face him.

"That was really nice of you, Raine," Diya said.

"Oh that," Raine replied. "Yeah, that was nothing actually, don't worry about that."

In that moment, Diya saw a different side of Raine, the one that Raine was trying to show Diya earlier. "You know," Diya commented. "You may be a sarcastic, overbearing jerk, but I guess you're also a kind person as well. I guess I didn't see that in you earlier."

"Well, it's not like I went around showing that at any point in time," Raine rebuked.

"True, but now I'll just have to start giving you the benefit of the doubt," Diya said in response. "Come on, let's get back to Beacon. I'm sure our teammates are wondering where we are."

* * *

**AN: *checks the date this was last updated and calculates how long it's been since then***

**Uh, yeah this has certainly been a long time since an update huh. But before anyone asks, I just wanted to say I had absolutely no idea what to do with this. I debated just canceling it, but then I re-read it, and I felt like I could continue with it for a bit. That lead me to the second of my problems that I have with this story.**

**In all honesty, I have way too many OC's to use for this story. So, I feel that I may have to cut some of these out of the story, just for the sake of actually being able to keep this manageable. So, I have a method to what I'm doing for this.**

**Any OC that has shown up or has been mentioned thus far is still in. Meaning, the main characters, as well as the side teams that were mentioned previously are all in. OC's that are slated to be villians/mercs/others, are most likely going to be trimmed down. If you no longer want your OC featured in this story (and personally I don't blame you if you do), then all you need to is tell me your OC and they will be removed from the docket. I have an idea on some already, so I'll try to keep everyone updated on what's going on, if I actually continue to work on this any time soon.**

**ANYWAY, if your OC is still featured in here, please make sure that I'm keeping them up to what you had originally asked me to. I still want to keep this as accurate as possible, so please help me out with that.**

**Hopefully this doesn't take me long to update again, but I have a feeling that I'm going to keep working on this some more.**


	13. Need to Grow

Polly always seemed to have a tough time when it came to actually fighting against the other students. In a fight, Polly really only had one strength that she could rely on, that being her physical strength. She could easily take a hit from someone, but that was about it. Pretty much everyone who tried to fight her only had to just wear her down over time without having to worry about being dealt much damage since she wasn't too strong. Despite being able to wield her weapon, which took quite a bit of strength to hold, actually swinging it at an enemy wasn't easy for her to do.

Given that most students had a ranged function to their weapons as well, they could easy stay away from Polly and fight on their terms. Polly had a bow, but she wasn't good with it, and thus never bothered to learn how to use it properly. All her opponents took advantage of this flaw in her fighting style, and in sparring matches, they would just overpower her from outside the range she was comfortable with.

Getting more and more frustrated, Polly would often sit outside by herself and take in the nature around her, hoping that she could find something to help her get past this. Instead all she found was that she couldn't focus, and instead, she went back inside to wander her way back to the dorm room.

One particular day, she was passing by the training rooms, when she heard the sounds of someone practicing inside. It wasn't an uncommon thing to hear someone training, but for some reason, she found herself curious by who it could be. So, as quietly as she could, which wasn't quiet enough, Polly tried to get a peek inside.

It was a surprise to see that Amethyst was the one training inside. She was out of her usual combat attire, and instead wore a long white sparring robe, with a pair of shorts and bandages around her chest. Her forearms, shins, ankles, wrists, and parts of her hands and feet were also wrapped up in bandages. She was using a practice dummy as a way to work on her swordplay, the weapon she had in it's Katana form.

Polly, remembering what happened on their first night, tried to quietly make a getaway, but it was no use. Before she opened the door, a knife appeared right by her head, and she jerked backwards and fell onto the floor.

"You shouldn't go snooping around in other peoples business," Amethyst said as she walked over to the door to grab her knife. "Some people might not take too kindly to that."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you while you were training," Polly reacted, jumping to her feet and rubbing the back of her head.

"Then why did you exactly?" Amethyst asked, her hand still holding the knife from before.

"Oh, uh, well I uh," Polly stumbled, trying to come up with something to say, but unable to form the words.

"Ok, stop," Amethyst cut in. "Take a deep breath, calm down, then start from the top."

With that in mind, Polly made sure that she was calming herself down. "Ok, so, I was outside trying to figure out how I could become a better fighter, but I tend to just enjoy being outside when I'm out there. So I was coming back to my room and I heard you training and I don't know why but I wanted to see who it was."

"Well you clearly aren't that quiet in doing so," Amethyst chastised.

"Yeah," Polly said, letting her head hang low. Suddenly she thought of something and immediately perked up. "Oh, so you're like a really strong fighter, and you can handle yourself really well. So, why not help me become a better fighter myself?"

"You can't be serious," Amethyst replied.

"I sure am," Polly proclaimed. "It'll be great, you with the suave, dangerous look to you, and me with the bright smiling beatdowns of all the Grimm. We'd be the greatest team ever!"

Amethyst couldn't help but wonder what she had just gotten herself into, noting how Polly was practically running in circles around her. She held out her Katana in front of Polly's path to stop her before the girl got carried away.

"Hold it a moment," Amethyst replied. "I never agreed to anything, so don't go putting words in my mouth."

"Oh come on," Polly lamented. "You know this will be fun!"

Somehow, Amethyst knew it wouldn't stop until she agreed. '_Better to get this out of the way and let her down gently. Poor kid really don't know what she's getting herself into exactly,_' Amethyst thought to herself.

"Fine, I'll help you," Amethyst conceded. "But there's a few caveats to this deal though."

"That's fine, just let me know what they are," Polly beamed.

"First of all, while we're training, you listen to what I say, when I say it," Amethyst listed. "Second, if you have a problem with anything that we work on, you have two choices, deal with it, or walk out the door. Next, me helping you with your training does not mean that I'm your friend, so don't get any ideas. Lastly, outside of training, don't expect me to treat you any nicer than I normally treat anyone else, got it?"

"Yeppers!"

"Fine, now get going," Amethyst requested. "We start tomorrow morning at 5."

"Why do we have to start so early?" Polly groaned.

"What was it that I literally just said not even a minute ago?" Amethyst questioned.

"Right, sorry," Polly replied before making her way out the door.

"Make sure you have something that works for training, and bring your weapon with you," Amethyst called out as Polly left the training arena.

* * *

The next morning, Polly was really tired, but she somehow managed to make it to her practice session with Amethyst. Polly was tired, but she wasn't about to give up because of a little early morning. Amethyst however, looked like she had no problems with being tired, and she was ready to work, unlike Polly. Now that Polly was there though, she wasn't about to go easy on her.

"Alright, let's wake you up," Amethyst said to Polly. "You and I are going to run around the practice room for ten minutes as a warm up. After that, we'll really get into the training. You better keep up with me by the way."

Amethyst of course waited for Polly to stand up before taking off, making sure that the girl was following her. Amethyst wasn't going to slow down for Polly, but for this first day, she knew that it wasn't going to be easy for her to handle.

As the two of them ran, Amethyst noticed that Polly was starting to lag behind a bit. Not a surprise to Amethyst, but it just meant she knew what she was working with. Amethyst was sure that she would be awake for what was to come afterwards.

By the time they finished, Polly looked like she was out of breath. Amethyst was amazed that she managed to make it this far into Beacon. "Alright, now that you're awake, we can begin the real training."

Amethyst walked over to a weapon rack, and pulled two staves off of the rack. She tossed one to Polly, who caught it, despite looking absolutely horrified by the weapon. "Come on, I want you to show me what you know with the weapon style," Amethyst said. She noticed that Polly wasn't following her. "What?"

"Um, can't I just use my own weapon?" Polly asked.

"This is a practice staff, pretty much the same thing as what you have now," Amethyst said. "What's the big deal?"

"I just, don't know how I feel about using something, not real," Polly replied.

"And what exactly isn't real about it?"

"Well, it's metal," Polly admitted.

"So what?"

"I can't use this."

"You can't be serious right now," Amethyst said as she walked back over to Polly. "What's so bad about metal exactly that you can't use it?"

"I don't expect you to understand this, but I just don't feel right using anything other than a natural weapon, such as my own staff," Polly said. "I'm a nature girl at heart, and I can't just cast that aside so easily."

Somehow, the innocent nature of Polly's confession struck a chord within Amethyst. She felt bad for Polly, going into a world she really doesn't fit in. '_Who says that I fit in either?_'

Sighing, Amethyst tried to relax a bit. "Look, I get that you being nature girl is your thing, but the sad fact of life is, there is going to be plenty of things that you are going to have to do even though you don't like doing them. Using weapons that aren't nature based, dealing with situations you're not comfortable with, it's a part of being a Huntress, and you signed up to do this."

"I know but-"

"No buts, just listen," Amethyst interrupted firmly. "I'm sure you had all these great ideas of what being a Huntress was all about, but reality is nothing like what you imagined. It's cruel, treacherous, and there are going to be things that you wish weren't. You asked for my help in training, but the first thing you need to learn from me, is that the world isn't going to stop just for you. The sooner you move past that and accept that you need to deal with it, the quicker you'll start to improve on your natural skills."

Instead of saying anything, Polly just responded. She felt a bit down trodden, but unfortunately, she knew Amethyst was right, deep down inside.

"Look, at least for today, why don't you just use your own weapon?" Amethyst suggested. "I'm sure that'll give me a better understanding of your strengths and weaknesses."

That got Polly to perk up. "Righty-o!" Grabbing her staff, Polly made her way out to the training floor.

"Ok, now, explain to me all that needs to be known about your staff," Amethyst said as she followed her.

"Oh, well it's made from an extremely dense wood that only comes from an ancient oak tree in a very inaccessible part of the world," Polly began. "Because of the low oxygenated air and the cold temperatures, the wood that grows from the tree is nearly impossible to break. My staff, being of that wood is incapable of breaking under almost any pressure, though when dealing with fire, it still has a chance to burn."

"Wow, that must be some powerful stuff," Amethyst said, genuinely interested in what she had just heard.

"Yeah, though I'm not that strong and really only can use it for defense instead of offense," Polly admitted.

"Well then, show me what you do know, and we can go from there," Amethyst said as she started up the training program.

* * *

**AN: Well, good news, I actually got more of this done. Bad news, I still am trying to figure out who I should keep or cut. As it stands I've already had people asking me if I'm still accepting OCs. Given that I'm cutting the list now I don't see why I would add any more for the time being, the odds of them getting cut would just be that much higher.**

**Anyway, just keep letting me know what you think of this, and if you think the characters are up to the way that the creators have envisioned them.**


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